Richland takes 3rd in state softball. Kamiakin, Hanford finish strong
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- Richland finished the season 25-4 and won third place at state tournament.
- Ali Evans struck out 43 batters over 21 innings and hit .439 in tournament.
- Hanford went 3-2, lost to Skyline, then won two consolation games.
Richland finished its season with a 25-4 record with a third-place trophy at the state softball tournament in Richland.
The Bombers opened play by pounding Eastmont 20-0 in a 5-inning game shortened by the run rule. Ali Evans and Adelyn Etzel combined on a no-hitter.
Richland then beat Rogers of Puyallup 4-0 in the quarterfinals, before the Bombers fell 7-4 in the semifinals to Graham-Kapowsin.
“We felt we had the skills to match up with Graham-Kapowsin,” said Richland coach Joel Evans. “It was good to see how they reacted after that loss. I told our four seniors, ‘It’s up to you.’”
Richland did bounce back in the consolation bracket by edging Hanford 5-4, then pounded Tahoma 10-0 for third place.
Ali Evans, a sophomore, dominated in the circle, striking out 43 batters over 21 innings. She scattered 8 hits and surrendered just 2 earned runs. Evans also batted .439 (7 for 16).
Etzel, meanwhile, hit .533 (8 for 15) for the tournament, driving in 7 runs. She scored 5 runs and hit a double and home run.
Evans says this year’s tournament results felt better than the 2025 tournament.
“Every year Richland’s goal is to win state,” he said. “This year feels more glorious. The seniors this year had a good year.”
Hanford went 3-2 over the weekend, to end its season with a 22-6 record.
The Falcons opened tourney play by beating North Creek of Bothell 4-2 in 9 innings. That sent them into the quarterfinals, which meant all three Tri-City teams were in the quarterfinals.
“I think we all expected that,” said Joel Evans. “Kamiakin, Hanford, Richland, we all knew we had a chance to make the quarterfinals.”
Only Richland would win in the quarterfinals.
The Falcons fell to eventual state champion Skyline of Sammamish by a 6-4 score.
In the consolation bracket, Hanford beat Kamiak of Mukilteo 7-1, and stopped Kamiakin 9-4 before losing 5-4 to Richland.
Neve Jimenez led Hanford with a .421 batting average (8 for 19), driving in 8 runs, and having a double and home run.
Teammate Alana Eaglehart hit .294 (5 for 17), but she had a double, triple and three home runs for her hits. She also pitched 11.2 innings, striking out 11.
Meanwhile, Kamiakin went 2-2 on the weekend, beating Skyview of Vancouver 3-1 to open the tournament.
The Braves then lost 5-1 to Issaquah, rebounded in the consolation bracket to beat Puyallup 7-5, and then were eliminated by Hanford 9-4.
Kamiakin pitcher Elizabeth O’Leary — who has committed to Central Washington University — pitched 19.1 innings in the tournament, scattering 18 hits and striking out 25 batters.
Teammate Jordynn Marquez, an Eastern Oregon University commit, hit .642 (9 for 14) for the tournament, as the Braves finished the season with a 24-5 record.
3A state softball
Kennewick (17-12 overall) went 3-2 in Lacey.
As a 14 seed, the Lions had to win a play-in game on May 21 just to keep playing in the main tournament.
They did so, beating No. 19 Shelton 7-1. Then they took down No. 3 Peninsula 13-7 in the second round on Friday.
That put Kennewick into the quarterfinals, where it lost 11-8 to No. 6 Stanwood.
In the consolation bracket, Kennewick beat Shorewood 4-2. That got the Lions to the final day of the tournament, when they lost 14-13 to No. 5 Timberline.
Senior Mayce Davis hit .333 for the tournament, scoring 7 runs, had 7 RBIs, five doubles and a triple. Davis will play at CBC next year.
Teammate Bella Serrano hit .471 (8 for 17), driving in six runs and scoring five runs herself.
Mt. Spokane, which Kennewick took to 9 innings in the 3A district tournament championship game before losing a few weeks ago, won the state title.
Southridge’s team, despite having a 12-17 overall record, went 2-2 in the tournament.
The Suns, like Kennewick, had to win a play-in game to continue in the tournament. They did so by beating Gig Harbor 9-0.
Southridge would then lose 9-2 to Mt. Spokane, bounced back to edge Everett 4-3, then were eliminated 18-4 to Bishop Blanchet.
Senior Aryn Sloot was 3 for 13 for the tournament, driving in 5 runs with two homers, and scoring 4 runs. Mallory Idler hit .333 (4 for 12) with two runs, 4 RBIs and a double and homer.
1A softball
College Place finished fourth at the state tournament in Richland, going 2-2 for the weekend.
The Hawks opened the tourney by losing to Elma 2-1. But they bounced back in consolation play by beating Royal 4-0, then took down Cedar Park Christian of Bothell 15-3, before losing to Elma again by a 14-2 score.
Anna Ortega led College Place from the circle, pitching 20.1 innings, surrendering 15 hits and 5 earned runs, and striking out 38 batters. Ortega also hit .333 (4 for 12) for the tournament.
Teammate Gracelyn Tonn hit .467 (7 for 15) for the tournament, scoring 5 runs, driving in three runs, and hitting three doubles.
College Place finished with a 21-4 record.
Montesano ended up winning the state championship.
2B state softball
River View went 3-2 in the state tournament in Yakima, just missing out on a fourth-place trophy.
The Panthers opened tourney play with an 8-7 win over Colfax, then lost a wild 17-16 quarterfinal game to Adna.
The No. 6-seeded Panthers bounced back to beat Coupeville 18-2 on Friday night, before they came back on Saturday to beat Pe Ell/Willapa Valley 8-6.
River View’s final game was a 7-6 loss to Liberty of Spangle.
Danika Koch led the way for the Panthers, hitting .588 (10 for 17), driving in 12 runs, scoring 11 runs, and hitting four tricked and two home runs (final game stats were unavailable).
Lily Holt hit .600 (9 for 15) and had 7 RBIs. She added a double and two triples.
Bree Stacy hit .467 (7 for 15), scored eight runs, and had a double, triple and homer.
1B state softball
Richland’s Liberty Christian is back on top.
The Patriots beat Naselle 7-4 on Saturday to win another state softball title.
It’s the first time in three seasons that LC has won the state title. The Patriots also won it in 2022 and 2023. They placed second in 2024 and 2025.
Senior Bella Rogel led the way for the Patriots this season, as LC finished with a 21-2 record. Rogel, a pitcher, has committed to Jackson State.
LC beat Dayton 11-1 in the quarterfinals, then the Patriots faced their long-time rival, DeSales, in the semifinals. LC beat the Irish 7-4 to set up the final matchup.
DeSales finished third, going 3-1 in the tournament.
Prep track and field
The state track meets (plural) will be held this week at two different sites.
Tahoma High School is the host for the 4A, 3A and 2A meets; while Yakima’s Zaepfel Stadium will host the 1A, 2B and 1B state meets.
All meets begin Thursday and run through Saturday.
Here’s a look at each meet, with some of this area’s top athletes:
4A BOYS
Chiawana’s Athen Harris was the area’s top performer when he won both the 110 high hurdles and the 300 hurdles. … Meanwhile, teammate Gavin Naef came away with the javelin title. … Hanford sophomore Jonathan Allen continues his trek toward a state title by winning the pole vault crown. He is the state leader going into the event. … Mead earned the team title with an astounding 176 points. Richland earned third place with 84 points.
4A GIRLS
No one had a better district meet than Richland senior Naly Khamlue-Pratt. The standout who is headed to the University of Nevada in the fall won three individual titles — the 100 meters, 200 meters and long jump. … Chiawana’s Mylie Anderson also had an outstanding meet, qualifying for four state events in the long jump, triple jump and the 4x200 and 4x400 relays. … Kamiakin freshman Jayee Jenkins earned victories in both the 800 and 1600 meters. … Pasco’s Alyla Parker won the discus, and finished second in the javelin. Chiawana’s Sawyer Chubb (400 meters) and Kamiakin’s Emaunii Smith (high jump) are the state leaders going into their events. … Kamiakin earned the team title, scoring 125 points. Chiawana finished third with 111.
3A BOYS
Hermiston’s Leroy Lozano Mejia took distance wins in the 1600 and 3200 meters. He is the state leader in the 3200. … Kennewick’s Garret Craft earned the victory in the 110 high hurdles, then placed second in the pole vault. … Five other area standouts each won an event: Kennewick’s Carter Bendewald (javelin), Southridge’s Gabe Borisch (100 meters), Hermiston’s Maxim Shilhanek (shot put), Kennewick’s Peter Smith (discus), and Hermiston’s Carter Swanson (400 meters). … Smith (shot put) and Bendewald (javelin) are state leaders going into this meet. … Cheney won a closely contested team points race, scoring 95 points. Hermiston was second at 89.5, while Kennewick finished fourth at 81.
3A GIRLS
Walla Walla’s Audrey Davenport was the area’s top standout, winning the long jump event, while helping the Blue Devils win both the 4x100 and 4x200 relays. … Wa-Hi teammate Alexis LaTour also ran on those winning relay teams, and she also finished second in the triple jump. … Kennewick’s Tessa Lewis earned the high jump title, while Southridge’s Casey Mackay finished first in the 300 hurdles. Lewis is also the state 3A leader heading into her high jump event. … Mt. Spokane ran away with the team title with 176 points.
2A BOYS
Prosser’s Gavin Case heads to the state meet after winning the discus and shot put events at the CWAC district meet, which ran May 19 and May 22 in Quincy. … Prosser also has district champs in Timothy Hudak (100) and Rylee Holmes (pole vault). …Grandview’s Kaiden Hall (javelin) and Brendan Kramer (800 meters) also won district titles. …. Othello’s George Gentry cleared 6-4 to win the district high jump event.
2A GIRLS
Prosser has some talent headed to Tahoma, including district high jump winner Rebekah Den Hoed. Teammate Katharine Hudek won the CWAC 400 title, and she headlines two of the Mustangs’ top relay teams. In fact, Prosser is sending all three of its relay teams to state. … Othello’s Abigail Douglas heads to state as the district champion in both the 100 and 200 meters.
1A BOYS
Connell’s Adam Mauia won the shot put event at the district meet May 19 at Cashmere. He also placed second in the discus. … Teammate Benjamin Naef heads to state as one of the top javelin throwers at the state meet. … College Place sends a pair of district champions: Aeden Self (1600 meters) and Tucker Wicks (3200).
1A GIRLS
Connell came away with three district champions at the meet in Cashmere: Raegan Strong in the 400 (she finished second in the 200), Remington Eppich in the javelin, and Alyssa Huber in the discus. … Kiona-Benton’s Elijah Strong won the shot put title. She also placed second in the discus.
2B BOYS
Keep an eye on River View senior Miguel Cruz. He won the district title in both the shot put and discus last week at Central Washington University. Cruz is already committed to compete in track and field for the University of Idaho. … River View’s Chris Espinosa enters his javelin event as the state 2B leader. He also won the district title last week. … Columbia-Burbank senior Aaron Thelander enters the state meet as the district triple jump winner.
2B GIRLS
Columbia-Burbank’s Mia Leahy is the 2B state leader heading into the javelin event. But she didn’t win that event at the district meet last week in Ellensburg. She did, however, the 100 meters title.
1B BOYS
DeSales’ Jason Guest is the 1B state leader heading into the 110 high hurdles. He won that event at the district meet May 22 at Valley Christian. Guest also placed first in the 300 hurdles, and helps lead the Irish’s 4x100 and 4x400 relay teams. Those squads also consist of Uriah Raymond, Dominic Fazzari and Matthew Scott.
1B GIRLS
Dayton’s Rosemary Yutzy will be involved in four events at the state meet. She won the 300 hurdles at the district meet and helped the Bulldogs’ 4x100 relay team finish first. She’s also qualified in the 100 and 400 meters.
Jeff Morrow is former sports editor for the Herald.