DeSales stops Colfax run for state trophy at Yakima

A walkoff win by DeSales in the bottom of the seventh inning shut down another Colfax bid for a state softball trophy in the 2B playoffs at Yakima Saturday. The Bulldogs finished 2-2 in the tournament.

They advanced to the semi-final round with two wins Friday and then ran into Pe Ell in the semi-final game. The coast club canned Colfax 12-2 and went on to defeat Adna 1-0 in a thrilling championship game.

Colfax then dropped into the consolation round and ran into DeSales. The Irish faced Colfax after eliminating Davenport 9-1 earlier Saturday.

Colfax and DeSales locked up in a 4-4 tie after three innings and neither club managed another score until the final inning. Colfax sophomore Amy Hickman and DeSales eighth grader Ashlyn Lyons locked up in a pitching battle.

Colfax scored one run in the top of the seventh for a 5-4 lead going into the bottom of the seventh. DeSales came back with two runs to shut Colfax down.

Lauren Moore, who was pinch running after Brittney Burke drew a walk, scored the Colfax go-head run in the top of the seventh. Moore advanced on a sacrifice bunt by Brooke Waldo and scored on a sacrifice fly by Christa Nyholm who also hit 3-3 in the game.

DeSales needed two runs in the bottom of the inning to win, and they produced. Lyons had a hit for an RBI double. She scored with two out on a rap by Amanda Wamick.

After the 6-5 win, DeSales defeated Napavine 10-8 to take third place in the tournament.

Colfax dropped into the consolation round after Pe Ell, the eventual champs, stacked up the 12-2 semi-final win in the first round Saturday.

“They scored eight runs in the top of the first inning, and that really took the win out of our sails,” Colfax Coach James Bledsoe said. He added Colfax went into the noon game after playing a late quarter-final match Friday night.

Pe Ell finished with 10 hits.

Coach Bledsoe credited Pe Ell starter Amanda Woods with stopping the Colfax offense.

“She was dead on with total control. She could hit the outside corner, and we just weren’t able to deal with that,” Bledsoe noted.

Angelina Phelps relieved Woods in the fourth inning.

Hickman started for Colfax, and Moore relieved her in the third innings.

Nyholm had three of the six Colfax hits in the semi-final game.

Colfax advanced to the semi on a 15-6 win over Orcas Island in the quarter-final round. That game started almost two hours late and the Bulldogs didn’t wrap up the first day of playoff action until close to midnight.

The quarter final win went long with the Bulldogs booking 13 hits. Hickman went the distance for Colfax and allowed 11 hits. Hickman went 3-3 at the plate, and Danielle Herne homered to lead the offensive attack.

In the first tourney round Friday, Colfax downed Waitsburg Prescott 17-7 in a five-inning game. Hickman threw a five-hitter at the Tigers who rolled up 10 errors in the tourney scorebook.

Colfax hit the 10-run margin with a nine-run blast in the bottom of the fourth inning to take the opening win.