CASTLE ROCK — It has been a season of firsts for King’s Way Christian baseball.
The program’s inaugural year saw plenty of wins and a first Trico League title.
But a first district title will have to wait. King’s Way fell 2-1 to Hoquiam on Saturday in the District 4 championship game at Castle Rock High School.
But there’s still more ground to break during the team’s pioneering season. King’s Way next heads to the Class 1A state tournament as a No. 2 seed.
King’s Way will open state play Saturday against Cle Elum in Wenatchee.
Senior Josh Tully said only once did King’s Way feel like a first-year program.
“Probably the first game,” he said. “From the start of the season until now, the team has completely changed.”
King’s Way has rattled off 18 wins against four losses. Coach Ty Singleton said the first hurdle was getting players who had played for different schools across Clark County to gel quickly.
“One of the things we challenged them right from the get-go is how close of a team can we be,” Singleton said. “They are definitely a team. I’m really proud of them.”
The team’s mettle was tested early in Saturday’s district title game. Hoquiam (18-6) loaded the bases in the first inning and had two runners on in the second. But freshman pitcher Riley Danberg escaped those jams both times.
Hoquiam scored two unearned runs in the third inning, but King’s Way clawed a run back in the fourth. Tully, who was 4 for 4, singled, stole two bases and scored on a wild pitch.
King’s Way had trouble against Hoquiam pitcher Kyle Standstipher, a burly 6-foot-6 power pitcher who struck out 10 in 5⅓ innings.
The Knights had runners in scoring position each of the last three innings, but couldn’t find a crucial base hit to tie the game.
Still, Singleton was pleased with his team’s defense, baserunning and ability to draw six walks against a tough pitcher.
“Obviously you always want to win, but there’s nothing that discourages me from watching our team play today,” he said.
Singleton has taught his players not to focus so much on winning or losing, but on playing what he calls “beautiful baseball.”
“We execute certain things, we play a certain way,” he said. “We don’t measure ourselves against our opponent. We’re doing our best on the next pitch to play our best baseball.”
And next, King’s Way hopes to see how its best baseball measures up against the best 1A teams in the state.
