Pe Ell/Willapa Valley knocks off Ilwaco to clinch state berth
May 15-Box Score
At South Bend HS
TITANS 6, FISHERMEN 2
Pe Ell/WV 100 031 1 - 6
Ilwaco 000 101 0 - 2
PWV Pitching - Morales 4 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 K; Jarvis 3 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 4 K. Highlights - Blain 1-4, HR, RBI, R; Jarvis 2-3, 2 2B, 2 RBI, BB, R; Morales 2-4, 2B, RBI.
ILW Pitching - Pelas 5 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 1 K; Cunningham 2 IP, 3 H, 2 R (1 ER), 2 BB, 3 K. Highlights - Cunningham 2-3, RBI, R; Pelas 2-3, 2B, R; Hazen 1-3, RBI.
For the first time in nine years, the Pe Ell/Willapa Valley baseball team is headed to the state tournament.
The Titans clinched their spot at state on Friday, when they defeated Ilwaco 6-2 in a 2B District 4 Tournament Winner to State Game in South Bend.
"Very excited, and very proud of these guys," PWV coach Kent Smaciarz said. "Nobody really expected us to be in the position where we were. I'm just really excited for these guys. They're stoked, and we're excited to continue to play."
It was a pitcher's duel through four innings, as both PWV's Mauricio Morales and Ilwaco's Dylan Pelas allowed just one run each through those frames.
The Titans got to Pelas in the fifth, though, when Max Jarvis hit an RBI double to put PWV in front. Later in the inning, Eddie Clements scored on a balk, and Morales helped himself with an RBI single to make it 4-1.
Brody Magruder scored on a passed ball in the sixth, and even after Ilwaco got a run back in the bottom half, Kaeden Blain put the finishing touches on the win with a solo home run in the seventh.
"Today, it just felt like the guys were really locked in," Smaciarz said. "They wanted to win this game, and they delivered on it ... They wanted this one more than the unknown (of the fifth-place game) tomorrow."
Jarvis and Morales finished with two hits each and combined to drive in three runs, while Morales and Blain finished with one RBI apiece.
Morales came out after the fourth having allowed just five hits and a run, and Jarvis allowed just two hits and a run while striking out four across the final three frames.
With the win, the Titans sent Ilwaco to the fifth-place game. The Fisherman will have to beat either Toledo or Toutle Lake to return to the state tournament.
"They've beaten us multiple times throughout the years," Smaciarz said of PWV's league rival. "It's really nice and sweet to be able to get the game that really mattered."
Due to other cancellations on Friday, there will not be a third-place game, as both teams who would have played in it would have already clinched their state spots. The Titans will enter the state tournament at 16-7 overall. They'll learn their seeding and first round opponent on Sunday, when the state brackets are released by the WIAA.
"I'm just really, really proud of these young guys," Smaciarz said. "We have no seniors, guys with virtually no varsity experience, and they are just dumb enough to keep on winning and keep on playing hard and competing, not knowing who we're up against ... I'm very proud of them."
Copyright 2026 Tribune Content Agency. All Rights Reserved.