Kadin Yeung helped the Centralia baseball team snap its 13-game losing streak, pitching a complete game one-hitter to lead the Tigers to a 1-0 win over Black Hills.
“Kadin has been our guy all year long,” Centralia coach Jake LeDuc said. “And we were finally able to help him out today and get him in the win column.”
Yeung didn’t allow a hit until the sixth inning, and he struck out 10 batters while issuing just two free passes.
“He was keeping them off balance with his fast ball and breaking ball,” LeDuc said. If you’re able to control those and throw them both for strikes, you’re gonna have success at the high school level. That was definitely him tonight.”
Black Hills’ Willy Kytta was just as impressive on the bump, allowing just three hits while walking two and striking out 13, but an unearned run in the third was the difference.
In that inning, Jon Leedy reached base with a two-out walk, and he advanced to second on an errant pickoff attempt.
Kellen Rooklidge hit a slow roller towards short, and that throw was also off the line, allowing Leedy to trot home and score the game’s only run without the ball being hit out of the infield.
No matter how it came, LeDuc acknowledged that breaking the losing skid felt like a weight had been lifted off the team.
“We’ve played a number of ball games where we’ve played very well for five or six innings,” LeDuc said. “And tonight, we were finally able to play seven innings and get a win. That was huge.”
The Tigers (1-13, 1-7 2A EvCo) and Wolves (1-7, 0-6 2A EvCo) will play again on Wednesday in Black Hills.
