Ticket punched! Sumner crushes Kennedy Catholic to reach 4A semifinals
For the second time in the past three seasons, Sumner High School’s baseball program is headed to the final four.
Sumner defeated Kennedy Catholic, 9-2 in the Class 4A state tournament quarterfinals on Saturday evening in Puyallup to advance to next Friday’s semifinal round in Everett.
“It’s exciting,” catcher Evan Hellner said. “We’re all ready, excited. We’re itching to get to next week. We’ve just gotta prepare all week, we’re gonna go hard and we’re ready to go.”
The game was never in doubt. Coming off a 7-0 win over Moses Lake in the opening round earlier in the day at the Heritage Recreation Center, Sumner came out hot again against Kennedy Catholic. The Spartans scored two runs in the second inning and four in the third to quickly put the game out of reach.
Evan Hellner hit a solo home run to right field in the second inning to get things started and it snowballed from there. A Bryce Carl single and Xander Cypher double scored two runs apiece.
On the mound, Brody Santman mowed through Kennedy’s lineup, tossing 6 1/3 innings, allowing four hits, two earned runs, walking four and striking out two.
“The offspeed was working, the changeup really has just been effective,” Santman said.
Hellner saw everything working from his point of view.
“He was throwing with so much confidence,” Hellner said. “Once he settled in there, that changeup was — that was killer.”
Sumner racked up 16 runs in two wins on the day, getting contributions from up and down its lineup.
“I think the only people that can beat us is ourselves,” Hellner said. “When we’re all like that, we’re a tough team. Not even just one through nine, but one through 20, our guys are all in it, we all want to be here, we’re just ready.”
Sumner will likely be without its starting left fielder, Bryce Carl. On a steal attempt in the fifth inning, Carl got caught in an awkward in-between moment, appearing unsure whether to slide or run past the Kennedy Catholic second baseman. He slid late and knocked over the Kennedy second baseman, who took issue with the collision and got in Carl’s face.
The benches cleared and both players were ejected from the game. The ejection means Carl will be forced to miss the next scheduled game, which in this case, will be the semifinal game next Friday.
“I’ll just be honest, that’s one of the nicest kids I’ve ever coached,” Sumner coach Dylan Mclauchlin said. “I know he’s got no ill intent. I asked him what happened. He told me, ‘I said I’m sorry and he just started shoving me.’ So it’s kind of a weird situation, but legitimately one of the nicest kids I’ve coached.”
Mclauchlin and Sumner athletic director Chris Paulson plan to appeal the ruling with the WIAA before next week’s game.
Either way, Sumner is two wins away from hoisting the state championship trophy. Could the baseball team win one in the same school year as the football team, which won its second straight 4A state title last fall?
“It would mean we run the state,” Santman said, smirking.
“It would mean everything,” Hellner said. “That’s our goal.”
Sumner faces No. 6 Kamiakin, 10 a.m. at Everett Memorial Stadium on Friday, May 29 in the state tournament semifinals. The winner moves on to face the winner of No. 1 Richland and No. 5 Gonzaga Prep, 4 p.m. Saturday, May 30 at Everett Memorial Stadium.
“We’re hitting at the right time, peaking at the right time,” Mclauchlin said. “It’s just a heck of a group.”
HOW SOUTH SOUND TEAMS FARED
In the 4A bracket, No. 8 Olympia beat No. 9 Woodinville, 15-5, in the opening round on Saturday but fell 11-1 to top-seeded Richland in the quarterfinal round. No. 13 Curtis upset No. 4 West Valley in Yakima before losing a heartbreaker to No. 5 Gonzaga Prep, 4-3, after the game was tied heading into the bottom of the seventh inning.
No. 3 Tahoma was upset by No. 14 Lake Washington in the opening round, 1-0. No. 12 Puyallup couldn’t get the bats going in a 7-0 loss to No. 5 Gonzaga Prep in the opening round.
In 3A, two teams from the North Puget Sound League advanced to the semifinals. No. 4 Decatur beat Shorewood and Snohomish to qualify for the final four, while No. 6 Kentlake beat Southridge in the opening round and got revenge against No. 3 Gig Harbor, beating the Tides 7-4. Gig Harbor had beaten Kentlake a week prior in the 3A District 3 championship game, 12-0.
In 2A, two locals will play in the semifinals. No. 13 Orting was the surprise, beating No. 4 West Valley in the opening round before a 14-3 win over No. 12 Sehome in the quarterfinals. No. 2 Tumwater pitched a pair of shutouts, beating No. 15 Port Angeles, 7-0 and No. 7 Nathan Hale, 5-0.
This story was originally published May 23, 2026 at 9:14 PM with the headline "Ticket punched! Sumner crushes Kennedy Catholic to reach 4A semifinals."
