Colton baseball takes second in state

Garth Meyer, Gazette Reporter | May 31, 20180

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Coltons Matt Wolf throws from the outfield at Wheeler Field as his cousin Tom, another senior converges behind in the state final. Jerry Morse photo.

Almira/Coulee/ Hartline came into the game undefeated with a pitcher who had allowed only one run for the season, earned or not.

Dalton Kentner, the ace, a junior, kept up his work in the state final at Wheeler Field in Centralia May 26, throwing into the seventh inning.

While Colton batters pushed him, in the field, the Wildcats’ gloves were left wanting, with five errors contributing to six unearned runs for ACH, who won 8-4 to take the 1B championship, capping an undefeated season.

“We clearly didn’t play as well defensively as we should have or as we have all year,” said Colton coach Pat Doumit.

On the mound for the Wildcats, junior Reece Chadwick pitched into the fifth inning, allowing two earned runs with four strikeouts. Cameron Bean, a senior, threw the last 1 1/3 innings.

ACH started off with two unearned runs in the first inning before Colton tied the game in the fourth on an RBI-groundout from Kian Ankerson and a single from Matt Wolf.

The Warriors then took two more unearned runs in the bottom of the fourth as Colton failed to answer. ACH went up 8-2 after the sixth inning before the Wildcats rallied in the seventh to close it to a final score of 8-4.

Kentner went out in the seventh due to pitch count.

“He was a fiery competitor,” said Doumit. “Even in the other dugout, you can appreciate a guy who plays the game like that.”

Colton, in the losing effort, scored four runs against Kentner, to make a total of five against him for the year, from all opponents. Colton also got seven hits off him, a season record as well.

“Offensively, our guys made (Kentner) work,” Doumit said. “But he was able to make big pitches in the situations that he needed to.”

Wildcats’ hits in the game came from Tom Wolf, Chadwick, Parker Druffel, Luke Vining, Ankerson and Matt Wolf.

ACH also committed five errors, but mostly in inopportune moments.

“I can’t even remember when their errors happened,” Doumit said. “Ours were very untimely for us.”

Colton finishes the year second in state with an 18-8 overall record. It was the sixth appearance in the 1B final for a team coached by Doumit, whose teams have won three state championships in his 11 years at Colton.

“The goal is always to get there,” he said. ”But it’s one thing to think about it at the beginning of the season. For these guys to do it, a lot of progress had to be made.”

SIDEBAR

Colton will lose three seniors from the 2018 state 1B second-place team: Cameron Bean – a four-year starter and cousins Matt Wolf and Tom Wolf.

“Cameron is one of the best pure hitters we’ve had since I’ve been with the program,” said coach Pat Doumit. “Tom, our leadoff hitter, all year, day-in and day-out, outworks everyone. Matt, any team needs a guy like him, probably the most versatile guy we had.”

Matt Wolf came out his freshman year to be a manager, not thinking he had what it took to contribute on the roster.

“Matt is an athlete who made himself into a baseball player,” Doumit said.