The Kent/Chinook Little League All-Stars picked up last week where the group left off a year ago.
That is, the local stars continued their winning ways.
Behind a huge offensive performance by Jared Mackie, the Kent/Chinook All-Stars took a pair of games from Federal Way National/Steel Lake to win the District 10 title on July 2-3 at Auburn’s Brannan Park.
“(Jared) had a great tournament,” said coach Kirk Davis.
Indeed the Kentlake junior-to-be did have a fantastic tournament, going 8-for-9 with six RBIs.
Kent/Chinook, which is comprised of players between the ages of 14 and 16 who live in Kent, Covington, Bonney Lake and Enumclaw, knocked off Federal Way National/Steel Lake 11-0 in the opener and 13-6 in the championship game of the two-team District 10 tournament. The two wins lift Kent/Chinook into the state tournament, which will run from July 16-22 at Brannan Park. Kent/Chinook opens the tournament against Redmond at noon on July 16. Kent/Chinook beat Redmond 9-4 for last year’s state title, which helped the local stars earn a berth to the Western Regional tournament in Ontario, Calif.
This year’s team is comprised primarily of the same players who won the state title last year, Davis noted.
“They play great defense and score a ton of runs,” Davis said. “It’s the hitting and defense that is better than last year.”
Mackey went 4-for-4 with two doubles, two RBIs and two runs scored in the 11-0 victory. He continued the torrid pace in the championship game, going 4-for-5 with a double, triple and four RBIs.
Mackey, however, was far from alone among the local standouts.
Garrett Robertson added a pair of hits, including a double and an RBI, in the opening win while Ricky Davis chipped in two runs scored and an RBI double. Mike Mazzitelli delivered a two-run triple while David Prince served up a complete-game gem on the mound, going the distance and striking out four.
The beat continued for the Kent/Chinook stars in the championship game. Along with another big offensive performance by Mackie, Colby Thompson went 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored; Riley Baker went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI while Prince added a pair of hits and four runs scored. John Benson picked up the win on the mound with six strong innings.
Kent/Chinook will enter the state tournament among the favorites to win it all.
FASTPITCH: Auburn/Kent win three, advance to state
After a first-round loss, the Kent/Auburn Senior All-Star fastpitch team bounced back in a big way during the District 10 tournament at Brannan Park, which was held from July 2-6.
The Kent/Auburn stars lost its opening game 20-18 to Federal Way National, but responded by picking up three straight wins to secure the title. Kent/Auburn lost the opener on July 2, then responded with a 12-5 win over Federal Way/Soundview on July 4. Kent/Auburn continued the pace July 5-6, upending Federal Way National 3-1 in the semifinals, then again in the championship game, 10-8. The team is comprised of 11-12-year-old girls in the Kent and Auburn area.
The three wins helped the local stars earn a berth in this weekend’s state tournament, which will be played in Woodinville.
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