Through rain and hail, host Black Hills was able to weather the conditions better than Centralia as the Wolves earned a 6-2 victory in 2A Evergreen Conference play on Thursday.
The Tigers cracked twice as many hits — 8-4 — as the Wolves but a slew of walks proved too costly to overcome.
Brady Sprague started on the mound for Centralia, striking out six and allowing three earned runs with eight walks in 4.2 innings. Landon Kaut tossed the final 2.3 innings, striking out three and surrendering one earned run with a walk.
“We had a difficult time throwing strikes,” Centralia coach Adam Riffe said. “We walked too many, and that’s something you can’t do against a team like Black Hills.”
Shortstop Moshie Eport led the Tigers offensively with three hits while Landon Jenkins added a pair of hits.
“(Eport) has been swinging well,” Riffe said.
Black Hills ace Joseph Floyd tossed a complete-game victory, striking out three and allowing one earned run on eight hits.
Black Hills (8-3, 3-3 EvCo) heads to Aberdeen for a 4:30 p.m. matchup on Friday.
Centralia (4-3, 3-1 EvCo) hosts Tumwater on Friday in a non-league game with playoff implications if needed. The Tigers head to Shelton for a doubleheader on Saturday.
