Historic championship!

YAKIMA – The Moses Lake Mavericks (16-1) are the 4A state champions after defeating the Chiawana Riverhawks 13-3 in five innings. This state title is the Mavericks' first in school history.  

“I'm so happy for the girls, I'm proud of them,” head coach Mike Hofheins said. “It was a weird day with everything that happened, but they had a calm about them, like, ‘Just tell us when, we're ready.’ That was kind of the vibe I got from them all day.”  

The Mavericks were originally slated to play the Riverhawks at 2 p.m. Saturday after making it through their first bracket matches Friday, but due to rain disrupting field conditions, the game was moved to 6 p.m. at West Valley High School.  

The Mavericks started strong with three runs in the first inning to take a 3-0 lead. However, the Riverhawks found a way to tie it up by the top of the third inning. The Mavericks' defense would throw them out and take over in the bottom of the third. From there, they were able to score one run off a home run by Mya Martinez.  

“I was just like, ‘I really hope it gets out,’ because then we’d get up, and I know I have a good hitter behind me, and she’ll follow through,” Martinez said.  

The Mavericks' defense continued to hold strong in the top of the fourth inning, including a strong effort in the outfield led by Addi Reffett, Lila Johnson and Alina Lopez. Pitcher Anisa Valdez pitched a strong game, striking out two batters and only allowing three earned runs.  

The Mavericks took over in the bottom of the fourth inning and came out firing on all cylinders. Hayden Morris, Samantha Kling and Lopez combined for three straight home runs to take a commanding 8-3 lead over the Riverhawks.  

From there, the Mavericks piled on four more runs to increase their lead to 12-3. The defense held the Riverhawks scoreless once again in the top of the fifth inning and a single sealed the win and the Mavericks' slowpitch softball program's first-ever state championship in school history.  

Hofheins said his players did a great job of taking the momentum and running with it Saturday.  

“Until we had that last out, I was not feeling comfortable to be honest with you, because I've seen (Chiawana) come back, and I've seen their grit and the character they have. They're well coached, and they play hard, so you've got to win every battle, and our girls just stepped up and did it,” Hofheins said.  

Morris, who remembered the feeling of falling short in the semifinals of the 2024 state tournament, said the feeling was surreal to reach this crowning moment.  

“It feels unreal, honestly, like I'm just so proud of us and how we played together. How much we've all grown together is really cool,” she said.  

The team didn’t fall short throughout the weekend’s state tournament play with a dominating shutout win against Lake Washington in their first match Friday. The team started the game with a 10-0 lead in the first inning and used that foundation to build to a 21-0 win.  

“The job is not over, so we got to crank it back up for the five o'clock game,” Hofheins said after that first game.

They kept a solid run going in Game 2 against Skyview, but it looked shaky at first, with Skyview pulling ahead with 6-2. The team kept their backs straight and heads high and fought back to pull in a 10-6 win, advancing them to the state title game Saturday.  

“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,” the coach said after the second game, and he turned out to be right.

Hofheins praised the senior group for being integral leaders for them this season.  

“Especially proud of the seniors, the six seniors that just led and didn't blink. That word resilience comes to mind. If anything ever went wrong, they just moved on to the next play, and the younger kids learn from it,” Hofheins said.  

Martinez said winning the state championship with this team will be one of her favorite moments as an athlete in Moses Lake.  

“I think it's probably one of the best moments, because we have a lot of seniors I got really close with, and that's really special to me to have their last year with us and to win all together,” Martinez said.  

Mavericks Athletic Director Loren Sandhop said he has seen the work the Mavs slowpitch team put in this season to reach this moment. Their commitment showed in the summer with how much time they spent together at workouts and practices. He said this game will create a memory they will never forget.  

“They're just fun to be around, because they enjoy being around each other and playing with each other and come into the park every day, and I think that's what they're going to miss more than anything,” Sandhop said.  

An emotional Hofheins expressed his excitement to get the band back together in the spring for fastpitch.  

“The cool part about this is I get another season with them in the spring. I'm just happy for the girls. They like competing for their school and their town ... I'm kind of speechless,” he said.  

BOX SCORES: 

LKWA: 0-0-0-0-0: 0
MAVS: 10-3-4-4-X: 21

Game 2:

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

Title game: 

CHWA: 0-2-1-0-0: 3
MAVS: 3-0-1-8-1: 13 

    The Mavs’ Hayden Morris (2) eyes the ball before taking a swing at the ball. Morris hit a home run in the bottom of the fourth inning.
  

    MLHS’s Anisa Valdez (32) takes her next pitch at center field. Valdez struck out two Chiawana batters in the 4A state championship.
  

    Mya Martinez (22) yells out to her teammates after a big play on offense. Head Coach Mike Hofheins said the senior group did a great job leading the team throughout the season.
  

    Addi Reffett (21) throws the ball to the infield after making a catch in the outfield on defense.
  

    Alina Lopez (20) takes a crack at the ball against Lake Washington on Friday. The Mavericks earned a dominant 21-0 win in the first round of the 4A state tournament.
  

    Hayen Morris (2) cheers on her teammates from the dugout against Skyview on Friday. The Mavericks overcame a 6-2 deficit in the semifinals of the 4A state tournament to win 10-6 and advance to the state championship game.
  

    Amaiah Martinez (11) sprints toward third base against Skyview on Friday. The Mavericks put up five runs in the fifth inning to pull off the comeback.