Thomas Clouse

This is the next installment in a semi-regular series of yarns about living off the grid, even if for a weekend.

Some 6,859 teams stormed 458 courts Saturday as the 25th installment of the world’s largest 3-on-3 basketball tournament engulfed downtown Spokane. Many of the 26,810 Hoopfest players weren’t much bigger than the ball. Others had crossover dribbles that long since qualified for AARP.

PASCO – The Mt. Spokane Wildcats essentially had to win the game twice, but found a way to end their magical season with a victory over Shorewood on Saturday to finish third in the State 3A baseball championships. The Wildcats (21-6) lost a 4-3 heartbreaker Friday against O’Dea for a chance at their first state baseball championship. But they rallied with the 9-4 win Saturday over the Thunderbirds.

PASCO – Mt. Spokane’s chase of its first state title in baseball ended with a 4-3 semifinal loss after a bizarre rundown with two outs in the final inning that involved every O’Dea infielder before the game ended with a numbing thud. Down 4-1 to O’Dea going into the final inning, Jordan Fitzpatrick and Blake Macdonald singled to set up Drew Rasmussen, who smashed a ball over the right fielder for a double that scored two runs to make it 4-3.

All the suicide squeezes, sacrifice flies, double steals and walk-off home runs have finally led several Spokane area teams to this Saturday: a spot in the state playoffs and a chance to hang a banner at its schools. Big schools like Lewis and Clark, Gonzaga Prep, Mt. Spokane, Cheney and East Valley, must travel in quests to earn State trophies. While smaller schools Freeman, Northwest Christian, Colfax and Colton, get to play near home.

Long dominated on the mound by teams to the south, Spokane squads did their best to erase that history Saturday as Gonzaga Prep won twice and Lewis and Clark once to send both Greater Spokane League 4A schools to the state tournament’s round of 16. After losing the district championship game last week to LC’s Tigers, G-Prep’s Bullpups had the long road. But they beat the Richland Bombers 9-5 in the first game Saturday and later trounced Walla Walla 13-4 after LC had earlier beaten the Blue Devils 4-1 to advance.

The Coeur d’Alene Vikings baseball team is trekking south to Boise to try to finish what they came one game from accomplishing last year: a 5A State title. The Vikings, who have won the 5A Inland Empire League for four straight years, are joined in the eight-team field by second-place Lewiston.

Gonzaga Prep rebounded from losing the District 8 4A championship with a 15-6 pounding of Ferris on Wednesday to qualify as the second seed in the upcoming regionals. Fellow Greater Spokane League members also fared well in loser-out games Wednesday. Mt. Spokane beat visiting Kamiakin 7-3 and Shadle Park played 12 innings to finally best Southridge 4-3.

Lewis and Clark coach Steve Bennett parlayed a second-place finish among Greater Spokane League 4A teams into a chance at a State berth. But the Tigers were rewarded with a matchup with GSL-champion Gonzaga Prep. Those teams square off at 7 p.m. Monday at Avista Stadium. The winner earns a regional berth, while the loser will play the winner of Central Valley versus Ferris for the other regional berth in 4A.