High school sports roundup for March 17, 2017

Top Performer: Donovan Yelle, Tahoma, went 1-for-2 including a grand slam and drove in five runs, winning the game, 14-9, over Ballard.

Tahoma 14, Ballard 9: Donovan Yelle got it done for the Bears at the plate and on the mound just after he got called up to play varsity.

After going down 8-5 in the fourth, Yelle came up to bat in the bottom of the fifth inning with the bases loaded. After battling against the pitcher in the wet conditions, Yelle got a hold of a ball and launched it over the fence for a grand slam.

“Funny thing is, Yelle was supposed to be on junior varsity,” said Tahoma coach Russ Hayden. “But because of an injury, our third baseman is now our catcher and he’s up here doing great things for us as a sophomore.”

Yelle also got the win on the mound for the Bears as the Beavers could only score one run in the final three innings.

“We try to preach to them it’s never over until the last out,” Hayden said. “We try to keep them positive. Great things happens if you don't quit and if we keep it close, we have a chance to win.”

Northwest Christian 7, Mount Rainier Lutheran 6: The Navigators set the tone early against the Hawks, falling behind but came roaring back to win on their opening day.

Peter Kosierowski smacked a solo home run in the first inning to start things off for the Navigators. Jumping out to a 4-2 lead, the Hawks were able to put together a couple of solid innings and take a two run lead by the sixth.

But that’s when the Navigators came back as with two outs, hit after hit came for Northwest Christian and they rallied to take the one-run lead.

Tony Dominguez finished the game giving up no runs and striking out four.

Eatonville 3, Spanaway Lake 1: The Cruisers jumped out to an early lead and never looked back against the Sentinels thanks to sound play from the whole team.

“I think we have good base running early on in the season, our kids made good decisions on the base paths,” said Eatonville coach Mike Moeller. “They had a good lefty on the mound, but we were careful selecting our pitches.”

AJ Goetz and Jay Brymer definitely selected good pitches as both were able to rip doubles. But if there is one thing that will carry the Cruisers, it's their chemistry.

“We have 16 seniors on this team. They’ve all played together and have lots of experience,” Moeller sad. “They’ve been playing together for a long time.”

BOYS SOCCER

Top Performer: Archie Caldwell, Curtis, scored a goal and had two assists in a 4-2 win over Graham-Kapowsin.

Curtis 4, Graham-Kapowsin 2: Archie Caldwell had a hand, or foot as it were, in three of the four Vikings goals on the night.

Starting things off rather quickly, Caldwell scored in the second minute of the game to immediately give the Vikings the lead. Forty minutes later, Caldwell assisted on Alex Whiting’s goal and Curtis had its hold on the game.

Jacob Baker of the Eagles would score five minutes later in the 47th minute to give his team some hope, but Tyler Brandt’s 54th minute goal assisted by Caldwell took the momentum right back.

Whiting would score again in the 77th minute as would Christopher Brown for the Eagles.

Tahoma 2, Hazen 1: Peyton Trask got the scoring going for the Bears in the 27th minute from an assist by Robbie Guyer, which would give them the early lead.

But the Highlanders would score the equalizer thanks to Chase Fjetland right before halftime in the 38th minute to swing some of that momentum back to their side. However, Tyler Hardin’s 49th minute goal for the Bears would seal the game for them.

Emerald Ridge 3, Puyallup 2: Back and forth the ball went for the Jaguars and the Vikings, but Jacob Hunter’s two goals for Emerald Ridge would be the difference.

Hunter would score in the 69th and 73rd minutes of the match, giving the Jaguars the lead both time. An own goal in the 70th minute from Emerald Ridge tied the game late, but Hunter came through again.

Kentridge 2, Mount Rainier 1: The Chargers owe their victory to Tre’Von Flowers.

After going down 1-0 to the Rams thanks to a Dennis Barahona goal in the 27th minute, Flowers struck in the 41st minute and the 53rd to give his team the win.

Enumclaw 1, Auburn Riverside 1: The Hornets and Ravens battled throughout the game, but could only muster a tie against each other.

Mikey King scored in the 21st minute to give Enumclaw the lead, then Auburn Riverside answered two minutes later with a Tanner Larson goal of their own. After that, neither team could find the space to score again.

This story was originally published March 17, 2017 at 11:08 PM with the headline "High school sports roundup for March 17, 2017."