The Capital baseball team came from behind again to beat Timberline 7-4 Saturday afternoon to sweep the two-game series.
Two days after rallying from a three-run deficit to beat the Blazers 7-6, the Cougars once again put the ball in play while trailing. With the win, Capital has swept Timberline for the second straight year.
Timberline capitalized on a Cougars error in the first inning to bring the first run across home plate, but Capital starter Brooks Barker left two on base. He retired seven in a row before surrendering a leadoff double to Dalton Abbott in the fourth, and Abbott scored on a sacrifice fly by Will Tennent.
Capital used three consecutive hits from Barker, Max Hanson and Isaac Linville to tie the game, with Linville driving in two runs on a single. The Blazers once again tallied a run on Capital’s defensive mistakes, as two errors and a wild pitch gave them a 3-2 lead in the fifth.
Ryan Wolfe pitched five strong innings for Timberline, allowing two runs on four hits and one walk while striking out four Cougars.
“Ryan pitched great for us,” Timberline head coach Doug LaPalm said of Wolfe. “He competed around the zone and put us in a good chance to come away with a win.”
Marley Gamble, who relieved Wolfe to start the sixth, walked three straight batters before exiting. Charles McSwain lined an RBI single against Caleb Bacon to tie the game at 3-3, and Xavier Green was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to give Capital the lead.
The Cougars scored five runs in the sixth inning off of just one hit, as a bases-loaded walk, grounder into a fielder’s choice, and a passed ball put three on the scoreboard.
Timberline’s comeback attempt in the top of the seventh began with a RBI groundout from Jr. San Nicolas, but Lane Nixon ceased any further scoring.
“We have to be better in relief and support our starters,” LaPalm said. “Offensively, they did a good job again of keeping us off balance.”
Barker struck out seven batters in six innings of work, allowing three unearned runs on four hits and two walks.
“Brooks Barker gave us six strong innings on the mound, which was great to see, and Lane Nixon also threw well in his inning of relief,” Capital head coach Brian Shannon said. “We had some adversity at different points in the game, and our guys did a terrific job moving on to the next pitch and responding positively. We had three guys who had RBIs despite not getting a hit, and those were important at bats that contributed to our team’s success.”
Capital (6-8, 6-5 Puget Sound League) gets a big test to start the new week with a two-game set against Nisqually frontrunner Peninsula (11-2, 10-1 PSL) Tuesday and Wednesday. Timberline (5-7, 5-6 PSL) takes on River Ridge (8-6, 5-6 PSL) those same days.
