Mavericks advance to state title game

YAKIMA — The Moses Lake Mavericks (16-1) are heading to the 4A state championship after a comeback win over Skyview. The Mavs overcame a 2-6 deficit to win the semifinal game 10-6. The Mavs were able to show off their mental strength by leaning on each other throughout the game.  

“We just had to pick up our energy,” Hayden Morris said. “We had to pick each other up and realize that the game wasn't over after the first two innings, and there was a lot of game left, and we just came together as a team.” 

In the first two innings, Skyview scored five runs while the Mavs only put up one score off an error. They slowly chipped away at the scoreboard in the third and fourth innings. In the bottom of the fifth, the Mavs were down 6-3.  

After Addi Reffett doubled on a line drive to center field, Hayden Morris and Lila Johnson capitalized and scored to cut the lead to 6-5. Three singles later and scores by Reffett, Mya Martinez and Samantha Kling, the Mavs completed a five-run inning to take an 8-6 lead.  

“We weren't playing clean (defense). Everybody's going to put the ball in play, and you've got to play clean defense, and we weren't the first couple of innings, but then we cranked it down, and we slowly crawled back into it and stole momentum,” head coach Mike Hofheins said.  

After holding Skyview scoreless in the top of the sixth inning, the Mavericks were up to bat once again. For the previous three innings, Skyview opted to let Morris walk to first base instead of letting her take a swing at home plate. However, they let her go up to bat, and she capitalized on it with a home run. Morris said she was surprised they let her go up to bat that late in the game.

The Mavericks scored another run before returning to defense and shutting down Skyview once and for all to win the game 10-6 and advance to the 4A state championship game. Hofheins was relieved but most of all proud of his team for not giving up, he said.  

“I just feel like nobody blinked. There's no panic in us. We knew we were going to find a way. Everybody trusted each other, and that's been the trademark of this team all year. We've been talking about it, and we did it again,” he said.  

After they pulled off a late comeback of their own, the Chiawana Riverhawks overcame a late 9-16 deficit to beat West Valley 21-17 to advance to the state championship and face the Mavericks on Saturday.  

They will play at 2 p.m. Saturday at Field A in Kiwanis Park. Hofheins said, hopefully, the team has one more game in them. 

“Their goal from day one was to go out and win the whole thing, and now we have an opportunity to do that. I would expect that they're just going to come ready to play,” he said. 

To see what happened in the first game of the state tourney for the Mavs, click HERE.

BOX SCORE: 

SKVW: 2-3-0-1-0-0-0: 6
MAVS: 1-0-1-1-5-2-X: 10 

    The Mavs’ Mya Martinez dives to make it to third base safe. Martinez was a vocal leader for the Mavericks in the semifinal game, trying to keep the energy up as they overcame a 6-2 deficit.
  

    Samantha Kling (4) fires up the dugout after the Mavericks take the lead for the first time over Skyview in the semifinals of the 4A state tournament. Kling also recorded two RBIs for the Mavericks on Friday.