All-Stars scrub way into World Series

South Sound squad gears for New York

By Meg Wochnick | The Olympian • Published August 05, 2008

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LACEY — It’s as if Patti Julagay had a hunch her son’s team would make the Babe Ruth World Series all along.

It was one week ago when Julagay decided to organize a car wash to help raise funds for the Thurston County Babe Ruth 13-year-old All-Stars’ upcoming trip to the Babe Ruth World Series.

Problem was, though, the team hadn’t won yet. There were still games to be played and a regional title to win in Kelso in order for that to happen.

Luckily for her — and the team — it did.

“I told everyone to check back early Sunday morning to see if we won,” Patti Julagay said.

Thurston County defeated Josephine County of Oregon 7-6 in nine innings in the title game of the Babe Ruth 13-year-old Pacific Northwest Regional tournament Saturday night to advance to the Babe Ruth World Series on Aug. 16-23 in Jamestown, N.Y.

“Had they lost, I don’t think they would have wanted to get up and do this,” Julagay said.

And so, on the corner of College Street and Yelm Highway, the car wash happened — just like Julagay planned.

The same teamwork the All-Stars used to get to the World Series was on display at the car wash. Thurston County players — and some parents — used that same team-first mentality to wash the cars that rolled in one by one. At times, there were at least two, sometimes three, cars being attended to simultaneously.

Not only did the 13-year-olds win Saturday, but as the players put it, they had to win twice.

Thurston County found itself down 6-3 after the second inning to the same Josephine County team that had beaten the 13-year-olds earlier in the week, 10-2. Neither team scored again until the seventh, where Thurston County put up three runs to tie the game at six.

Just when they thought they won when Ande Grantham scored the winning run in the seventh thanks to Sam Meyer’s suicide squeeze bunt, the umpires ruled the ball struck Meyer’s foot on the way up the first base line. Thurston County had to wait another two innings before Grantham scored the winning run — again — this time from second base off Derrick Wells’ single.

“It was crazy,” Cameron Frost said. “The first time we played them, we couldn’t hit at all. In the title game, we could hit.”

Frost is one of seven players on this year’s Babe Ruth All-Star team who have experience playing in a World Series.

Frost was a part of a Black Hills/Cal Ripken team that went to the World Series in 2004, and six other players were a part of coach Keith Stottlemyre’s Black Hills/Cal Ripken All-Star team that played in the 12-year-olds World Series in Aberdeen, Md., last summer. Stottlemyre is now the coach of the Babe Ruth 13-year-olds.

Some players’ past experience at the World Series may ultimately help the Babe Ruth team this time around, too.

“The nerves aren’t as bad and we have that experience,” second baseman Sam Meyer said.

“I didn’t think we would make it this far,” Jake Biscay said. “Once you get older, the competition is a lot harder. But we did it.”