Sequim High’s baseball squad’s late spring surge propelled the Wolves to within one win from state, but a familiar foe kept SHS from its first state berth since 2016.

Ninth-seeded Kingston ousted the Wolves (12-12), the West Central Bi-District’s 13th seed, with a 9-1 decision at Foss High School in Tacoma on May 11.

The Wolves played the Buccaneers evenly for most of the game, but they were undone by a bad fourth inning in which Kingston strung together six hits and a couple of walks to score eight runs.

Kingston had just two hits the rest of the game.

The Wolves were limited to just three hits by Zeke Schmadeke, Ethan Staples and Bryant Laboy. Schmadeke scored the Wolves’ lone run.

Despite the defeat, Sequim’s two district tourney wins gave them 12 victories overall — their best total since the 2019 season.

SHS tops 5-seed

Sequim got its biggest win of the season on May 8 in the district tourney consolation semi-final, knocking out fifth-seeded Fife from the district tournament and advancing to a winner-to-state game.

After giving up three early runs, Staples shut down the Trojans and the offense broke a 3-3 tie with three runs in the fifth inning for a 7-3 victory on May 8 in what what SHS coach Dave Ditlefsen called “a complete game.”

Staples finished with a strong line: six innings, five innings, three earned runs and a walk, with seven strikeouts.

“Ethan really did settle in,” Ditlefsen said. “He was able to locate his slider and keep them off-balance. It was one of his better performances of the season.”

Brayden White was 2-for-3 with two RBIs, Staples drove in two and Hunter Tennell and Ayden Holland both scored twice. Holland got on base four times, three the hard way: getting hit by pitches.

Sequim Gazette photo by Michael Dashiell / Sequim’s Ayden Holland grimaces as he’s hit by a pitch in the Wolves’ April 30 match-up with Kingston. Holland got on base four times in a 7-3 win over Fife on May 8 in the West Central District tournament — three times thanks to a hit-by-pitch.

Sequim took advantage of some wildness in the fifth inning after Fife hit two batters before Staples drove two in with a single to center.

The Trojans looked to close the gap in the bottom of that frame but Schmadeke made a diving catch deep in the outfield to close the inning.

White finished the job, tossing a scoreless seventh.

Topping the Titans

Sequim got a big game from Schmadeke — at the plate and on the mound — as they routed host Tyee 8-1 in the first round of the West Central Bi-District tournament on May 7.

Schmadeke ripped three doubles and drove in three runs to pace SHS from the leadoff spot.

On the bump, the sophomore tossed five innings f shutout ball, giving up a hit and two walks while striking out 10 Tyee batters as the 13th-seeded Sequim survived the loser-out district game against the 12th-seeded Titans.

White was 1-for-3 with a triple and walk, Devyn Dearinger was 2-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored, and Tennell drove in a run for the Wolves.

Laboy tossed two innings, giving up one run (unearned) and striking out four.