YAKIMA — After Friday’s close quarterfinal win over Pe Ell-Willapa Valley, Adna coach Bruce Pocklington admitted that the tight contest wasn’t very fun to watch from the dugout.
He admittedly enjoyed Saturday morning’s game more, as the Pirates dominated Kittitas 16-1 in a state semifinal to return to the state championship game.
“It was a bit more fun,” Pocklington said with a smile. “I like those games.”
The win puts the Pirates into the 2B State Championship Game for the fourth tournament in a row, and they’ll go for their second-straight state title against either Toledo or Warden.
“We came to do what we did today so far,” Pocklington said. “We got one more time to do that, and I’m excited.”
It wasn’t all Adna from Pitch 1 against Kittitas, as the Pirates didn’t score in the first, but they quickly took over the game in the second and third.
Lena McCloskey opened the scoring when she came home on a wild pitch, and Gaby Guard scored the first run of the third on another wild pitch to make it 2-0.
Adna added 10 more before the end of the inning, including a pair of RBI singles from Danika Hallom and Ava Simms and a towering three-run home run from Kendall Humphrey that nearly hit the second fence in the outfield, which is 300 feet from home plate.
Two-run singles from Hallom and Margarite Humphrey in the fourth got the Pirates to 16.
Hallom finished a perfect 3 for 3 with three runs batted in, and she also scored three runs. Simms collected two hits, as did Margarite Humphrey, Alyssa Carroll, and McCloskey, and Simms also allowed just two hits and struck out nine in five innings in the circle.
“The progress we’ve made is crazy,” Pocklington said. “They’ve really made progression, and that’s why I do this.”
The Pirates will take on either Warden or Toledo at 3 p.m., two teams that they have beaten earlier in the season.
Pocklington noted that those past wins mean very little now, as they’ll have to come out firing to repeat.
“That was early in the season, and this is late,” Pocklington said. “Both teams are better, and we’re better. It’s about who’s gonna show up and play … Just ready to roll.”
