The Black Hills baseball team led by four heading into the bottom of the seventh in its 2A District 4 pigtail matchup in Washougal on Saturday, but the Panthers rallied to tie it before eventually topping the Wolves 6-5 in nine innings to eliminate Black Hills from the district tournament.
Black Hills led 2-1 going into the seventh, but scored three runs thanks to a two-run single from Asher Strauss and an RBI single from Jackson Marshall to extend its lead to four.
Washougal answered with four runs to force extras, though, with the big hit coming from junior Kadin Gibbons. He hit a bases-clearing double with two outs to tie the game at five after a run scored earlier in the inning on a groundout.
After a scoreless eighth, Black Hills stranded a runner in scoring position in the top of the ninth, and Washougal’s Zane Benson opened the bottom half with a single.
He advanced to third on two walks, and he sprinted home on a wild pitch to score the walk-off winner and send the Panthers through to the quarterfinals.
Strauss finished with two hits and two runs batted in, while Brody Rice, Lincoln Brannin, and Marshall each had a multi-hit game.
The Wolves, who reached the district tournament for the first time since 2018, finish their season 4-16 and will lose five seniors to graduation: Cooper Parkinson, Elijah Simpson, Joel Beldo, Brannin, and Tobias Hilden.
