Eastside Catholic beats Bishop Blanchet with walk-off homer
May 15, 2012
Eastside Catholic High School defeated Bishop Blanchet in extra innings May 12 to take the Metro Conference championship.
After tying the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the seventh, Blanchet scored a run in the top of the eighth. Again the team tied it at 4-4 in its half of the inning.
Eastside Catholic starting pitcher and Issaquah native Alex Foley staved off Blanchet one more time, throwing a scoreless frame in the top of the ninth. He was rewarded by his teammate Jeff Bohling hitting a two-run, walk-off home run to end the game with a final score of 6-4.
Rain-soaked Liberty Patriots fall to Mount Si Wildcats
May 1, 2012
Mother Nature parted storm clouds just long enough for Mount Si and Liberty high schools to face off for the second time this season, ending in a Wildcat 4-2 win and a torrential downpour.
The pregame rain forced the conference matchup to be moved from the soggy Mount Si field to the Patriots’ turf ballfield in Renton. But the home-field advantage didn’t help the Patriots, who lost to Mount Si a second time this year on April 25.
It wasn’t until the second inning that any runs went up on the board.
Eastside Catholic pitcher Alex Foley named state athlete of the week
April 24, 2012
Alex Foley, of Issaquah, pitches during a stretch of baseball games earlier this month for Eastside Catholic High School that garnered him a statewide honor from the WIAA. Contributed
Alex Foley, junior baseball player for Eastside Catholic High School, was named WIAA male state athlete of the week for April 1-7.
With an earned-run average of 0.88 and 23 strikeouts in 16 innings pitched, he led his 3A team to three victories against O’Dea, Skyline and Chief Sealth high schools.
Issaquah High School baseball team defeats Roosevelt, 9-0
April 17, 2012
It doesn’t hurt when you score nine runs in the first two innings. It also never hurts when your starting pitcher throws a complete game shutout, and that’s what Issaquah High School senior pitcher Brandon Mahovlich did April 13 as Issaquah defeated Roosevelt, 9-0.
“It makes it a lot easier,” the winning pitcher said. “I can just go out there and throw strikes and not have to worry about it. They can score a couple runs and I can just pitch confidently with a lead.”
And quite a lead it was. Issa-quah jumped straight out of the gates with a two-run homer from senior shortstop Jake Bakamus, and followed that with the next five batters all touching home plate.
Spartans take Eastlake 4-3 in plateau baseball matchup
April 3, 2012
If Sammamish was only allotted one sunny afternoon last week, March 26 was the perfect pick as plateau baseball fans gathered in the sunshine to watch the Skyline High School Spartans edge out the Eastlake High School Wolves, 4-3.
Both teams entered the contest having been successful so far in the beginning of what looks like to be a solid season of league play.
Playing “4A KingCo in any sport is tough, but especially in baseball. There is no game you go into thinking, ‘We have the advantage,’” Skyline coach Chris Tamminen said. “A lot of the teams are right there with each other. Each game is going to be a battle. It’s going to come down to who can play in the clutch.”
The Spartans led 3-0 most of the game by grabbing a run in the second, third and fourth innings.
New rule, bats expected to lower scores, reduce injuries
April 3, 2012
New, stricter bat regulations are forcing producers to make less powerful bats and will greatly affect gameplay on both the college and high school levels.
The regulations require BBCOR bats, short for Batted-Ball Coefficient of Restitution. Though the bats are still aluminum, they are less “springy” and will hit more like wood bats. Permissible bats will feature a BBCOR-certified sticker.
A major problem with the old BESR (ball-exit-speed-ratio) bats was that they would become too powerful once broken in. As fibers within the bats repeatedly came into contact with baseballs, they would break down, become more flexible and surpass levels deemed safe.
“Back in the early days, the best it was going to be was right when you took it out of the wrapper,” Issaquah High School head baseball coach Rob Reese said. “Recently, bats would get more powerful after use.”
John Martin is happy to take the helm of Liberty’s baseball squad
March 27, 2012
John Martin, the new Liberty High School baseball coach, works his team in the gym while it’s snowing outside March 13 on the Patriots’ baseball field. By Greg Farrar
While he always had an interest in the game, Liberty High School coach John Martin never anticipated he’d end up dedicating the past 20 or so years to coaching it.
Pitching, defense will be key to local baseball teams’ success
March 13, 2012
Ethan Kalin, an Issaquah High School senior this year, advanced two baserunners with an at-bat in April 2011 during his team’s game against Skyline. By Greg Farrar
As the clocks spring forward and the calendar flips to March, the Issaquah, Skyline and Liberty high school baseball programs will all have a common approach to this season: pitching and defense.
With the new bat regulations for the upcoming season, first-year Liberty Coach John Martin thinks the game is in for a change.
