No. 5 Othello baseball beats Ephrata, falls to No. 1 Selah in District 5-6 playoffs
Rodney Harwood/Hagadone Newspaper Group - Othello freshman Jaxon Rocha lays out trying to snare a line drive to center field during the second inning of the 2A District 5-6 game with Ephrata.
SELAH — Othello went into the 2A District 5-6 semifinals with the idea of putting an end to Selah’s 16-game winning streak and dethrone the kings, and for three innings it looked like the underdog fifth seed just might take down the defending state champions on Saturday at Carlon Park.
The Huskies (13-9) took a 2-1 lead into the bottom of the fourth inning, but the Vikings (19-2) weren’t ready to give it up just yet. Selah sent 12 to the plate, scored eight runs and put an end to any upset ideas with a 12-2 decision in five innings.
No. 5 Othello was scheduled to host No. 6 Quincy on Tuesday. The winner can still punch its ticket to the 2A state tournament with a win in a crossover game to follow. The loser is done. Results were not available at press time. For playoff scores log onto http://www.cwacathletics.com.
No. 5 Othello 3, No. 4 Ephrata 1
EPHRATA — Othello senior Abel Gomez scattered just three hits, going the distance in the Huskies 3-1 victory over Ephrata May 3 in the first round of the 2A District 5-6 playoffs at Johnson-O’Brien Stadium.
The four-year varsity player was all smiles as he celebrated the win with his teammates.
“We made it to the playoffs once in my four years and lost in the first round. So this is pretty amazing to come here and win,” said Gomez, who threw just under 100 pitches in seven innings.
The Tigers (12-9) scored a single run in the second inning when Gunnar Falstad drove in a run with a single. Ephrata had two hits in the inning, but could muster just one more hit the rest of the game.
But still, as the zeros went up on the scoreboard, it looked like that single run might hold up with three outs to go. In the seventh, Camron Valdez stroked a one-out single to light a spark. Huskies first baseman Jay Rodriguez made it back-to-back singles, which was enough to chase Ephrata starter Trenton Kleyn.
Othello sophomore Jon Garza drove a fastball, low and away, for an RBI double off of reliever Steven Louie to tie the game. Huskies freshman Jaxon Rocha drove in two insurance runs with a 2-RBI single and the Huskies (13-8) finished the inning with three runs and four hits and their first lead of the game.