Hunch pays off for Wild

A hunch paid off, and as a result Mt. Spokane Wild advanced to the final four in their eight-team bracket today of the Washington Junior American Legion state baseball tournament.

Coach Alex Schuerman, after agonizing the night before, went with Kelly Fitzpatrick on the mound Monday and the lefty pitched a gutsy 3-2 win over the Yakima Valley Peppers in loser-out play at University High. It was Mt. Spokane’s third one-run decision in the tournament and fifth in the past six games overall.

“I kept flipping coins last night and I’m glad I went with him,” Schuerman said of the pitching call. “It was more of a gut feeling than anything. It seemed like the right matchup. He had a good mix of pitches against a good hitting team.”

Schuerman said that they had lost to Yakima Valley twice this summer by margins of 10 runs and more.

Fitzpatrick was staked to a 3-0 lead by the third inning and cruised through five before weathering trouble in the sixth (bases loaded with one out) and seventh (three base hits) innings.

“Kelly pitched great,” he said. “He pitched to contact and the defense was money.”

Mt. Spokane, top seed from town among four local state participants, is the lone remaining Spokane team. University and Cheney were eliminated in other Monday games.

Stars at Nike

The Spokane Stars Blue begin play today at the Nike Nationals girls basketball tournament in North Augusta, S.C., after finishing 3-3 in the Nike/U.S. Junior Nationals last week in Washington, D.C.

They play Team Essence of New York at 8:30 a.m. Pacific time and again at 3:45 p.m. against California Storm in the first two of five pool games in the 24-team tournament. Games continue Wednesday and Thursday to determine bracket qualifiers.

Paced by Katelan Loper from Post Falls, the Stars reached the round of 32 in the 96-team Level One tournament in D.C. after finishing second with a 3-2 record in pool play.

They lost to eventual tournament runner-up Philadelphia Belles 52-44 in the pool finale and eventual champion Cy-Fair of Texas in the first round of bracket play 49-27. Both are in the Nike Nationals.

In pool games the Stars beat the Florida Ice from Miami Beach 70-20, with Brooke Gallaway (Central Valley) scoring 14 points and Loper 13.

They rallied from an eight-point halftime deficit to beat the New York City Heat 43-39, with Loper scoring 17, but lost 63-61 in two overtimes to the North Carolina Lady Knights after blowing a 19-point halftime lead. Loper had 18 points.

Loper scored 12 in a 33-30 win over the Virginia James River Blaze and had 17 against the Belles.

Dodgers win Classic

Club Spokane Dodgers swept four games to win the Baden Classic baseball tournament in Seattle over the weekend.

They defeated host Baden 6-3 in the tournament semifinals and topped Taylor Baseball 8-2 in the championship behind tourney Most Valuable Pitcher Jimmy Reed. Reed also pitched two innings of relief in the semis.

Taylor Baseball, from Seattle, had won each of its games via the mercy rule before Reed stymied it for six innings.

J.J. Turbin was named tournament MVP, hitting safely in every game with a total of five hits, two of them doubles.

The Dodgers had opened tourney play with wins over the Bankers 8-0, with Jon Rapose hurling a shutout, and Seattle Stars 4-3.

Nate Blackham and Mitch Peterson each had six hits, with Blackham hitting safely in all four games and doubling twice. Peterson doubled and hit a home run, the latter coming in the title game.

•West Valley’s Peterson has been selected for the Northwest Mariners Scout Team that will play in this year’s Mariners Cup beginning Aug. 17.

Vaughn to sectionals

Mead graduate Ethan Vaughn has qualified for the United States Tennis Association sectionals in Beaverton, Ore., Aug. 20-23. The tourney will feature ranked USTA players from throughout the Northwest.

Vaughn most recently won U18 singles during a USTA tournament in Wenatchee and took second in the Yakima USTA U18 tourney four days later. He also joined with Clint Vidano of Wenatchee to win the doubles title.

Athletes from five states competed at both events.

Mathews signs

Freeman graduate Luke Mathews has signed a letter of intent to compete in track and field at the University of Great Falls.

Mathews, a multi-sport Scottie, placed in four events at state, including top-four finishes in the long and triple jumps.

Regional champs

Spokane Pony League’s 11U Bronco All-Star team captured the Northwest Regional Tournament and advanced last week to the West Zone Tournament in Walnut, Calif.

In Renton during regional pool play, Spokane defeated West Seattle 11-1 in six innings, and beat Mountlake Terrace 8-4. The locals beat the Seattle Senators 11-1 and finished undefeated with a 7-2 win over Maple Valley, breaking a 2-2 tie in the fifth.

The regional title followed a victory in the 12-team Tibbetts Valley Invitational in Issaquah.

Team members are Dylan Steen, Aaron Beaulaurier, Camden Bendickson, Jermaine Ducham, Hunter Liberg, Cole Beemer, Alek Jacob, Jordan Summers, Taylor Eskridge, Cal Webb, Adam Asan, Jacob Phipps and Johnny Sage. Coaches are Steve Webb, Dennis Beemer, Joe Sage and Geoff Asan.

Skilled in tennis

Sarah Swider, 8, of Hayden, Idaho won the gold medal in the 8-9 year-old division at the U.S. Junior Olympic Tennis Skills competition in Chula Vista, Calif. The competition featured 72 athletes Thursday through Sunday ages 8-13 in four sports – tennis, basketball, soccer and track and field.

District Little League

Spokane Southwest won the 11-12 age group District 13 championship and qualified for last week’s state tournament in Port Orchard. Southwest came through the loser’s bracket to beat North Spokane 13-4 and 3-0 for the district title.

Team members are Brody Asbury, Connor Cherry, Ryan Cote, Griffin Davis, Jake Hufnagel, Jack LaLonde, Tyrus LaRocca,

Ethan LaValley

, Buddy Slater, Stephan Szambelan,

Braedon Weber

and Cole Witter. Keith Slater is manager and Tim Szambelan is coach.