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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Freeman denied again by Hoquiam in State 1A baseball semifinals

By Michael Anderson Correspondent

YAKIMA – For the second straight year, Freeman’s Scotties came to Yakima with dreams of winning a State 1A baseball title.

For the second straight year, Hoquiam ended those dreams with a stifling pitching performance. The Grizzlies stopped the Scotties 3-1 in the semifinals at County Stadium on Friday.

Freeman (21-4) will play Overlake/Bear Creek in the consolation bracket at 1 p.m Saturday. A win would give the Scotties the third-place trophy, which would tie for the best baseball finish in school history.

In 14 innings against Hoquiam over two seasons, Freeman has managed just seven hits and one run. In 2015, Kyle Standstipher no-hit the Scotties through five innings in a 4-0 semifinal win.

Friday, left-hander Skyler Jump allowed just three hits and one run, striking out 14 as Hoquiam advanced for a chance to defend the title it won in 2015 against South Whidbey.

Freeman lefty McKabe Cottrell was nearly as effective, allowing just four hits. But the Grizzlies worked him for three runs on just two hits in the first inning.

“Fourteen strikeouts hurts,” a disappointed Freeman coach Chad Ripke said. “We only got the bat on the ball and made them make a play seven times.

“He (Jump) had good stuff but you have to put the bat on the ball,” Ripke said. “We didn’t really make them play defense. For whatever reason, again, we couldn’t get it done.”

As was the case in 2015, Hoquiam got its runs early and held off the Scotties.

Freeman had a chance to tie the game in the sixth inning. The Scotties strung together a base hit, a hit batter and an error to load the bases with just one out. But Jump recorded his final two strikeouts to get out of the jam.

Freeman got its only run in the fourth inning when McKabe Cottrell singled, went to second on a walk and scored on Jack Paukert’s single. But Paukert and Desmond Parisotto, who walked, were stranded when Simon Rooney struck out.

Our guys did a great job,” Ripke said. “I’m so proud of our guys to get here, back-to-back final fours. It’s so hard to get here.”

Ripke noted that his team had to win a 13-inning game in the first round just to have a chance to advance.

“We had a tough road; today wasn’t what we wanted but we battled.”