Luke Overbay shuts down Selah, sends Tumwater back to state championship game
May 29-Box Score
At Joe Martin Stadium
THUNDERBIRDS 3, VIKINGS 1
Selah 000 000 1 - 1
Tumwater 003 000 X - 3
SEL Pitching - Young 6 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 3 K. Highlights - Barthel 2-3, 2B, R; Williams 1-3, 2B; Kennedy 0-3, RBI.
TUM Pitching - Overbay 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R (0 ER), 1 BB, 13 K. Highlights - Gustafson 2-3, 3B, 2 RBI, R; Overbay 1-2, R; Chase 1-2.
When Luke Overbay was in middle school, he watched his brother, Alex, and his dad, Tumwater coach Lyle Overbay, win back-to-back 2A state championships.
"I remember the last inning," the younger Overbay said. "I wanted to do that."
Thanks to an incredible performance on the bump and some timely hitting from his teammates, the Overbays and the Thunderbirds will have the chance.
Luke Overbay struck out 13 batters and allowed just one run in a complete-game outing, leading No. 2 Tumwater to a 3-1 victory over No. 11 Selah in a 2A State Semifinal at Joe Martin Stadium in Bellingham, putting them in the state title game for the third time in the last five years.
"You win back to back championships, and you just experience how hard that was," Lyle Overbay said. "You have an appreciation for it. For these guys to buy in and do what they did in the offseason is great. And at the end of the day, they still needed to get things done, and they've done that."
Luke Overbay pitched a perfect top of the first, but ran into trouble when Selah loaded the bases with just one out in the second. It's the same scenario that he faced in Tumwater's quarterfinal victory over Nathan Hale.
Like in that victory, the junior righty got out of the jam. He got a liner to left before striking out the next batter to end the inning.
"After that, it was just a feeling thing," Luke Overbay said. "My arm was feeling great, I was pounding the zone, and I had my teammates behind me."
In the third, Liam Gustafson put Tumwater on the board, lacing a triple down the first-base line to bring home two runs.
"That was big," Lyle Overbay said. "He got into a good hitter's count, and for the most part, you're gonna be successful. He hit the ball hard, and those are the things that you want to do when you're in that hitter's count. I was very pleased with his approach early in the game."
Gustafson scored later in the inning on a first and third steal play, giving Luke Overbay a three-run lead heading into the fourth.
He retired the next nine batters he faced.
"(The triple) was the gamechanger," the Michigan commit said. "That gave me a big boost. I pitch my best when I have insurance. You could tell that my spike was up. I couldn't miss my spots, I had a good team behind me and I had insurance, it was huge."
The Vikings were able to get on the board in the seventh and bring the tying run to the plate, but Luke Overbay's 13th strikeout of the game ended it. He finished the night having allowed just four hits, a walk, and an unearned run. Of the 104 pitches he threw, 70 were strikes.
"When he's throwing strikes, it's hard for guys to square him up," Lyle Overbay said. "He's got so much good movement, guys end up trying to guess when he's on like that. He's done a really good job of throwing strikes."
Gustafson finished 2 for 3 with the two runs batted in, and Luke Overbay and Wyatt Chase added Tumwater's other two hits.
In the state title game on Saturday afternoon, Tumwater (23-4) will go up against top-seeded Bainbridge, the District 3 champion that beat No. 13 Orting 6-1 in the other semifinal. The Spartans will enter the championship game 23-3.
Who will start for Bainbridge on the bump is unknown. Utah Valley commit McCrea Curfman hasn't pitched since May 5, and Oregon commit Trey Thompson left Friday's semifinal with an apparent injury after just five pitches.
Both Curfman and Thompson's status for the title game is unknown.
"We'll expect everything and adjust when we find out," Lyle Overbay said.
If the Thunderbirds win, it would be their third state championship in school history, joining the 2022 and 2023 teams that Luke Overbay watched from the stands.
"It would mean the world to me," Luke Overbay said. "I remember my brother (Alex) and dad (Lyle) both crying. I want the same thing. I think this group can do it. I wouldn't want to play with any other guys. Win or lose, I think this is the best group at Tumwater we've had."
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