It wasn’t the Class 3A Metro League championship but the Eastside Catholic Crusaders will take it.
The Crusaders rebounded from a 5-1 loss to O’Dea in the Metro semifinals with a 4-2 win against the Garfield Bulldogs on May 14 in Seattle, clinching a berth in the Class 3A state baseball tournament. The Crusaders set the tone scoring three runs in the first inning of play. Eastside Catholic ace Billy Dimlow went the distance, allowing just three hits and two runs in seven innings of work. He improved his overall record as a starter to 9-0 with the win. Crusaders’ head coach Kyle Larsen was pleased with the way his ace performed with a state berth on the line.
“Billy did his usual thing. He pitched another complete game. He really cruised until he got to the seventh. He got into some trouble and gave up two runs but he got out of it,” Larsen said. “He didn’t give up any big hits.”
Alec Baer went 1-for-3 with 3 RBI and Addison Hull went 2-for-3 in the win for the Crusaders.
Larsen said his team was downtrodden following the loss to O’Dea but got back on track against Garfield.
“I could tell the guys were a disappointed we didn’t get to play in the Metro title game. I had to remind them last night about what they have all accomplished this year,” Larsen said. “I think once they got over the emotions of the tough loss to O’Dea then we were just fine. We get a chance to go play for a state championship. We’re pretty excited about it.”
The Crusaders (20-3) will compete in the first round of the Class 3A state playoffs at 1 p.m. on May 23 in Yelm against the Central Kitsap Cougars. The Crusaders will have had eight days off between their win against Garfield until they take the field for the first pitch of the state tournament.
“We will get a little bit of time off and it will give the guys a chance to kind of chill out, get our minds right, get focused and ready to go out and compete,” Larsen said in a phone interview on May 15. “We are in a pretty tough pod (bracket). Everybody we see from here on out is good. We got to be able to go out and battle. If you don’t do that you are going to get beat at this point of the season for sure.”
The Crusaders have won 11 of their past 12 games on the baseball diamond. Eastside Catholic’s only losses this season were to O’Dea (twice) and the Skyline Spartans in the season opener.
Shaun Scott: 425-453-5045; sscott@bellevuereporter.com
