A very good year for NC

When North Central’s softball team last weekend finished fourth at the 3A state high school tournament, it completed a superb sports year at the school.

The Indians had never before won a state softball game, let alone go 4-2 to bring home its first trophy in the sport. Their losses were to eventual state champion Kennedy, 2-1 in the second game, and to third-placer Sammamish in Saturday’s positional trophy game.

NC did so by scoring just enough runs, 10, to back durable pitcher Kelsie Vallies.

Vallies pitched three shutouts, including a nine-inning tiebreaker. The Indians also rallied for a 3-2 victory over Kelso.

On Friday, the Indians defeated Everett 1-0, scoring the run in the bottom of the seventh inning on a hit by Alicia Kahler.

“I was so afraid we wouldn’t score again (at state) for the third year in a row,” said coach Herm Marshall.

Kahler said, “She kept pitching the same, outside. I just took the closest pitch.”

NC led Kennedy 1-0 into the bottom of the seventh inning in Friday’s second game before suffering a tough loss. But the team scored twice in the sixth inning on a hit by Rhea Clary against Kelso and Vallies weathered a bases-loaded, no-out situation for the win.

A run in the bottom of the ninth inning against Hanford broke a scoreless tie and Vallies one-hit shutout of Bonney Lake assured the trophy.

This was NC’s third successive state trip. In two previous appearances the Indians had gone 0-4 and didn’t score. The year began when the boys cross country team captured the State 3A championship.

During the winter, the Indians boys basketball team parlayed karma to a third-place finish in state. After going 4-16 during regular season, the team went 7-2 during the postseason.

And last weekend, besides the softball trophy, North Central’s boys track team finished second at state, missing the title by three points.

Coupled with individual medals in cross country, wrestling and track, the move to Class 3A has been a boon for NC athletics.