Northwest 4A boys baseball: Mt. Vernon breezes to district title

EVERETT — Maturity prevailed as a bizarre scene of first-inning events unfolded last night at Everett Memorial Stadium. Youth, well, it just plain folded.

And Mount Vernon, a team stocked with college prospects and stellar seniors, proved why it belongs among the best high-school baseball teams in the state this season, beating Jackson 10-0 in five innings in the Northwest 4A District championship game.

"I was expecting them to be a little more aggressive," said Mount Vernon pitcher Josh Kutz, who pitched a two-hitter on three days' rest. "Once we got up on them, it took the wind out of their sails. You could see it in their body language."

Fourth-ranked Mount Vernon (20-2-1) plays its state regional opener Saturday at 11 a.m. at Everett Memorial against South Kitsap.

Jackson (16-7), which also qualified for state, plays seventh-ranked Kentridge Saturday at 2 p.m. at Heidelberg Park in Tacoma.

It's not surprising that the No. 4-ranked Bulldogs emerged as the best of WesCo's best. But nobody expected the dominating fashion or an abnormal start that left both coaches shaking their heads.

The Bulldogs made errors on Jackson's first two batters, leaving both in scoring position. Undeterred, Kutz pitched out of the jam — getting the first three of his 12 consecutive outs.

When it was Mount Vernon's turn to hit, Kyle Kendrick lofted a high fly to right field, which Jackson's Cam Myers dropped.

Then the dam burst. Kevin Durkan doubled. Bernardo Ibarra walked. Kutz tripled, then scored on a wild pitch, and Mount Vernon led 4-0.

"They had second and third, nobody out and didn't score," Mount Vernon coach Pat Swapp said. "We had two outs, nobody on and ended up getting four. That's where it turned, right there."

"A mature team does bounce back from that kind of thing," Jackson coach Kirk Nicholson said. "We're a fairly young team. And they showed their maturity. It's one of those things where you wish you played better. But you know what? It might have been for naught anyway."

Jackson had more than twice as many errors (five) as hits (two).

Other games

Marysville-Pilchuck 6, Lake Stevens 4 (winner to state, loser out) — Sophomore Josh Short hit a three-run homer in the fifth inning, powering the Tomahawks to a victory for the district's third and final state-playoff berth. It was Short's seventh RBI in two games. He hit a grand slam in a win over Cascade Wednesday.

Joe Newland also homered for Marysville-Pilchuck (17-6), which will play Tahoma at 2 p.m. Saturday at Kent Memorial. Lake Stevens finished 14-10.

Lake Stevens 7, Kamiak 2 (loser out) — Matt Fields (6-1) pitched a seven-hitter and had two hits and scored twice to help the Vikings continue their late-season run.

Lake Stevens started the season 0-5, but won 14 of its next 18.

Fields baffled the WesCo South champion Knights (18-5), the state's eighth-ranked team, with offspeed pitches.

Marysville-Pilchuck 6, Edmonds-Woodway 2 (loser out) — Jesse Schmidt retired the first eight batters and pitched a seven-hitter for the Tomahawks as they ended the season for the Warriors (15-7-1).

Marysville-Pilchuck turned three double plays in the last three innings and Josh Short drove in four runs.