Six unanswered runs in the seventh and eighth innings helped Linn-Benton stay alive in the NWAC Championship Tournament Sunday afternoon. The Beaks defeated the Spokane Sasquatch with a final score of 8-6 to advance to the final day of the tournament at David Story Field in Longview, Washington.
The Beaks faced an early deficit as Spokane jumped out to a 5-0 lead with three runs in the top of the second inning and two runs in the top of the third.
In the bottom of the third, the Beaks finally got on the scoreboard, with an Aidan Dougherty single scoring Evan Chadwick and a Jordan Hockett double scoring Dougherty to bring the Sasquatch lead down to three.
However, Spokane responded in the top of the fourth, adding another run to grow their lead to a comfortable four points, with a score of 6-2.
Entering the fifth inning, pitcher Ever Lamm replaced starter Jake Von Lubken for Linn-Benton. That would mark the end of Spokane’s offensive productivity for the rest of the game, with Lamm pitching the next three innings, only allowing one hit to go along with no runs.
The fifth and sixth innings were scoreless, but Linn-Benton made it a ballgame to close out the seventh inning, adding an explosion of five runs to take their first lead of the game, 7-6. The highlight was a Kellen Segel home run that began the Beaks’ scoring frenzy, scoring both him and Connor Boyd off a ball that flew clear out of the stadium into the parking lot.
Dougherty was hit by a pitch with loaded bases in the bottom of the eighth, adding another run to Linn-Benton’s tally.
Pitchers Russell Holly and Easton Corey would finish out the ninth inning for Linn-Benton, holding Spokane scoreless as the Beaks held on for a dramatic 8-6 victory.
With the win, Linn-Benton eliminated Spokane from the tournament. The Beaks will next play on Monday at 12:05 p.m., facing the winner of Tacoma vs. Lower Columbia. The Roadrunners are two wins away from their second NWAC title in three years.
The tournament’s double-elimination rules can result in a number of scenarios. Tacoma is still undefeated while Lower Columbia and Linn-Benton each have one loss.
- If Tacoma defeats LCC on Sunday and LBCC Monday at 12:05 p.m., the Titans will be NWAC Champions.
- If Tacoma defeats LCC on Sunday but loses to LBCC Monday at 12:05 p.m., the two teams will rematch at 3:35 p.m. for the NWAC title.
- If LCC defeats Tacoma on Sunday, LBCC and LCC will play on Monday at 12:05 p.m. The winner will play Tacoma for the NWAC title at 3:35 p.m. on Monday.
Linn-Benton played both Lower Columbia and Tacoma earlier in the tournament, defeating LCC 1-0 on Thursday but falling 10-5 to Tacoma on Saturday.
The full NWAC Championship Tournament bracket can be viewed here.
