Despite a flurry of showers and strong gusts of wind, the W.F. West offense showed out in its first game of the season, as the Bearcats scored 11 runs on 11 hits to beat Ellensburg 11-5 on Saturday at Bob Peters Field.
“It was good for the kids to get out and compete a little bit against somebody other than our own guys,” W.F. West coach Jesse Elam said.
After Miles Martin opened the game with a 1-2-3 inning on the bump ,the Bearcats took a 1-0 lead on a Weston Potter RBI double in the bottom of the first.
Ellensburg tied it with a run of their own in the top of the third, but W.F. West regained the lead in the bottom half on a wild pitch.
Martin was pulled after three innings, having allowed just one hit and one earned run while walking none and striking out one.
Elam said that Martin, a sophomore, already has plenty of big-game experience, including last year’s third-place game in the state tournament.
“He threw well for us last year,” Elam said. “He’s a lot more confident … He’s our guy right now.”
The Bearcats’ first big inning came in the bottom of the fourth, when they plated five runs. Four of them scored without the ball leaving the infield thanks to two wild pitches and two RBI groundouts, and Deacon Meller hit an RBI double to plate the fifth.
Four straight walks, a hit by pitch, and a sac fly brought the Bulldogs within three, but after a two-out triple from Martin in the bottom of the fifth, Grady Westlund brought him home with an RBI single to make it 8-4 heading into the sixth.
“Clutch hits there,” Elam said. “That’s kind of our goal once that other team scores. It’s to put guys on and put a run across.”
The Bulldogs scratched a run across in the top of the sixth, but W.F. West added three more in the bottom half thanks to RBI knocks from Ross Kelley and Connor Coleman.
In addition to going 3 for 4 at the plate with an RBI, Westlund threw the final inning and two-third, allowing just one hit and striking out one in the stretch.
“Grady was outstanding,” Elam said. “He came in and just shut it down. It was exactly what we needed.”
Meller finished 2 for 3 with a double, a walk, and he scored three runs, while Martin went 2 for 2 with his triple, a walk, and two runs in addition to his win on the mound.
The Bearcats (1-0) will hit the road for the first time on Tuesday, when they’ll head north to face 3A Timberline.
