Area Sports

Call it momentum, only perhaps the wrong way.

Sequim’s fastpitch squad may have a tougher road to a 2A state championship than last season, after dropping a pair of subdistrict games Saturday.

In 2011, the Wolves swept through subdistricts and the West Central District tourney undefeated. This spring, they’ll have to settle for a No. 4 seed to districts.

Sequim (14-4) opens the district tourney at 6 p.m. Friday, May 18, at Tacoma’s Sprinker Recreation Center, against the winner of the Washington/White River game played earlier that day.

A win gives the Wolves an automatic state berth, while a loss puts Sequim in three win-or-go-home contests.

After tying Kingston for the Olympic League regular season title, Sequim fell behind in the subdistrict opener 7-0 to Franklin Pierce through six innings before erupting for seven runs of their own. Bailey Rhodefer and Rylleigh Zbaraschuk had RBI singles to fuel the rally, capped by a two-run pinch-hit single by Amariah Clift and a pinch-hit RBI double by Olivia Kirsch.

A pair of Sequim errors in the bottom of the seventh, however, allowed Franklin Pierce to steal the game back, 8-7.

Franklin Pierce ace Kelli Crawford was sharp, striking out 12 Wolves and giving up just one earned run in seven innings.

Demiree Briones gave up three earned runs in her six innings of work, allowing eight hits and striking out three.

In the second subdistrict game against Interlake, Saints pitcher Ashley Scott held the Wolves to just one run on five hits in a 5-1 Interlake victory.

Rhodefer had Sequim’s top offensive highlight, a third-inning home run that trimmed Interlake’s lead to 3-1. But the Saints added two in the fourth inning to seal the win.

Makayla Bentz took the loss for Sequim, giving up just two earned runs in seven innings.

The Wolves committed six errors in each of the subdistrict games.

It’s the first back-to-back losses for the Wolves since May 20, 2009.