Sophomore pitcher Landyn Keister tallied eight strikeouts, Brayden Cheeka went 4 for 4 at the plate, and the Olympia baseball team beat Bethel 9-1 on the road Thursday for its fifth consecutive victory.
The Bears took an early 2-0 lead before Bethel scored its first run in the second inning. Keister left runners stranded on the corners in the third to protect the lead. Olympia’s offense came through with one run in the third on an Aiden Apfel RBI single, two in the fifth highlighted by a bunt single by Connor Hardy, and four in the sixth. Cheeka drove in a pair in the sixth with a single, his fourth hit of the day.
Keister retired the final seven batters he faced, and Noah Miller made it 13 straight putouts by shutting down Bethel’s offense in the sixth and seventh innings.
“Keister threw really well. He pounded the zone, and the slider was very good today, and Miller was really good as well,” Olympia head coach Derek Weldon said.
The Bears secured a season sweep of Bethel, as they won 13-3 over the Bison Monday.
Olympia (13-2, 9-2 South Puget Sound League) will welcome the struggling Puyallup (7-6, 5-6 South Puget Sound League) to its home ballpark Friday afternoon. The Bears were swept by the Vikings last season, including 6-0 in the District 3 4A quarterfinals last May.
