Mavs win Big 9 title, prepare for district title game

MOSES LAKE — With Tuesday’s sweep of West Valley (Yakima) the Mavericks won the Columbia Basin Big 9 regular season softball title, allowing Moses Lake to host this weekend’s district championship game against Eastmont.

The Big 9 title was locked up with a 16-4 and 21-0 win over the Rams on Tuesday.

“When we went to West Valley (Tuesday), we knew we had to basically sweep to host, and that’s what the girls wanted to do; and they did it with an exclamation mark,” Moses Lake coach Mike Hofheins said. “When you get to host a district championship at your own park, that’s pretty fun.”

The Mavs defeated Eastmont early in the season on Sept. 14 with 13-11 and 10-4 wins over the Wildcats.

“Super early in the season, they were new to slowpitch this year so you can bet they’re going to be greatly improved,” Hofheins said. “They obviously have great athletes, it’s going to be an extremely tough challenge for us. They’re going to be good.”

Moses Lake finished the regular season with a perfect 12-0 record against league opponents, defeating Big 9 teams by an average of 13.6 runs per game. Now, the focus turns to putting together a deep playoff run.

“I think we’re excited, the girls are enjoying the vibe of being in playoff mode and ramping up their competitiveness a little and practice intensity,” Hofheins said. “Just what I expect out of them come postseason — I think we were in that mode this week, and we’re excited for Saturday.”

Playing in district championship games has become familiar for the Mavs, who have been represented in the previous two CBBN title games. However, the scores have not favored Moses Lake; in 2021 Moses Lake lost 23-12 to West Valley and lost again to the Rams 20-11 last fall.

“I think we’re in a good spot right now mentally and team chemistry-wise,” Hofheins said. “I’m feeling good about where we’re at. The practices have been energetic and spirited, in the recent games we’re contributing up and down the lineup — I think we’re in a good spot.”

Despite the Mavericks losing five players from last year’s state-qualifying team, Hofheins said this year’s roster returns plenty of playoff experience from past seasons.

“We have a lot of veteran players that show a lot of leadership, and I think they’re embracing the moment,” Hofheins said. “They don’t seem nervous, they’re excited for it. I haven’t really gotten the sense that we’re young at all, even though we did graduate quite a few seniors last year. We have a lot of veteran players that have been varsity players for several years, and I feel like we’re a veteran group.”

Saturday’s CBBN district championship game between the Mavericks and Wildcats begins at 11 a.m. at Moses Lake. The winner advances to state, while the loser will face off against the winner of a play-in game between either No. 3 seed West Valley/No. 6 Sunnyside or No. 4 Wenatchee/No. 5 Davis at 1 p.m. Saturday for another chance to qualify for state.

“You don’t have to give a pep talk to have the girls get ready to play Eastmont,” Hofheins said. “They’re usually ready. It’s fun to play your rival and compete.”

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com.