<< Previous   of   Next >> Enterprise/CHRIS GOODENOW  (click to enlarge) Mountlake Terrace first baseman Karsten Strieby (top) celebrates the Hawks' 5-4 extra-innings victory over Shorewood with teammate Matt Shafer (20) May 6 at Everett Memorial Stadium. Enterprise/CHRIS GOODENOW  (click to enlarge) Mountlake Terrace head coach Andrew Watters (right) talks with the umpire during a 5-4 victory over Shorewood.

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CONTACT THE ENTERPRISE David Pan, Sports editor entsports@heraldnet.com Tony Dondero, Asst. Sports editor entsports@heraldnet.com

Hawks grab state baseball playoff berth

Sells delivers Terrace win in extra innings

By Tony Dondero
Enterprise reporter

EVERETT

Ryan Sells was due.

The Mountlake Terrace right fielder's night had consisted of two fly outs and two foul-outs when he came up with a runner on first and one out in the bottom of the ninth. The Hawks and Shorewood were tied 4-4 Tuesday night, May 6, at Everett Memorial Stadium.

But when Sells got a first-pitch fastball from Shorewood's Bobby LeCount, he ripped it into the left field corner. The Hawks' Matt Shafer came trucking around third with the winning run as Mountlake Terrace prevailed 5-4.

"I was ready for it, I was looking for that pitch," Sells said. "I was looking when I was going around first … I saw him coming around and I knew I had it."

Shafer led off the inning with a single off the glove of Shorewood shortstop J.K. Dykes. After Paul Clingan popped up, Sells' drive ended an intense two-and-a-half hours of baseball and clinched a state playoff berth for the Hawks. "He was the right guy in the right spot," Mountlake Terrace coach Andrew Watters said.

Mountlake Terrace plays Marysville-Pilchuck in the 4A District 1 title game at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 10 to determine the district's No. 1 seed to state.

Kyle Barisic pitched all nine innings to get the win for the Hawks.

"He did it again, he's done it again," Watters said. "He's awfully tough … He really deserved to get that win."

Barisic threw 106 pitches and retired the last seven batters he faced. He gave up seven hits, four runs, three earned and walked two while striking out four.

"I had a pretty low pitch count to start off with but I struggled in the third or fourth inning," Barisic said. "After that we kept fighting back. I knew we were going to pull through, so I went out there and kept going." Mountlake Terrace took a 2-0 lead in the second when Karsten Strieby belted a two-run double to left scoring Craig Heath and Andrew Woeck who drew walks off Shorewood starter Cole Clerget.

Shorewood cut it to 2-1 in the third when LeCount hit a low line drive that got under the glove of diving left fielder Jaykob Sells to score Colin Walker.

The Thunderbirds took the lead 4-2 in the fourth. Trevor Mitsui led off with an infield single, Andrew Giles walked and Alex Kuniyoshi reached base on a throwing error by Barisic on a sacrifice bunt attempt. With one out, Walker laid down a perfect squeeze bunt to score Mitsui with the tying run. J.K. Dykes hit a sacrifice fly to left and Daniel Hammer followed with an RBI single to round out the scoring.

The Hawks rallied to tie it in the fifth. Jacob Mann led off with a single and Sells followed with an infield single. Garett Totten drew a walk and on the play, Shorewood catcher Derek Schaefer threw down to third to try to pick off Mann but the throw went into left field. Mann scored and Sells moved to third. Sells scored on a groundout to first by Shafer, the second unearned run of the inning.

Mountlake Terrace threatened in the bottom of the seventh but relievers Blake Snell and LeCount got a strikeout and foul pop-up respectively, and the inning ended with the bases loaded.

A bit of controversy erupted in the sixth inning. With one out and Clerget on the mound, the plate umpire had Clerget change balls because he apparently had grabbed some dirt and rubbed it on the ball. Later that inning the plate umpire also ordered the Shorewood pitchers warming up the in the bullpen back the dugout, because too many players were standing around down there, Shorewood coach Wyatt Tonkin said.

"To be quite honest I don't think that anyone deserved to lose that game," Watters said. "That is about as good a high school game as you'll see."

Said Tonkin: "Either way win or lose, we played a great game."