Ryleigh Cruse, by her own lofty standards, said that she feels she hasn’t been hitting the ball as well as she had hoped to be heading into the postseason.
In the days prior to the 2B District 4 Tournament, she decided to spend some extra time in the cages, even carving out a few hours on Mother’s Day to try and be as prepared as possible for Rainier’s first-round matchup against Mossyrock on Monday.
“She’s a supportive mom,” Cruse said with a smile about her mother allowing the brief holiday detour. “She played in high school and college, so she knows how it is.”
Those extra reps paid off in a big way on Monday, when Cruse hit two home runs to lead the Mountaineers to a 9-7 victory over the Vikings, a win that puts Rainier through to the district quarterfinals.
“It was nice to be able to just feel like myself and hit the ball like it needs to be hit,” Cruse said. “It was really nice to be out there and fulfill the 4-hitter spot.”
When Cruse’s first home run — a grand slam to straight away center field — first cleared the fence in center field, it felt like a final blow to Mossyrock’s chances.
Rainier had already scored three runs before Cruse stepped to the plate with the bases loaded, and once she crossed home plate, the Mountaineers led 7-0 in just the second inning.
Gracie Green added an RBI single later in the inning, putting Rainier up 8-0 after two.
In that second inning, Mossyrock coach Doug Brown turned to Maci Rashoff in the circle, and Rashoff quickly stopped the bleeding and settled things down for the Vikings.
Mossyrock’s offense continued to struggle through the fourth, but started to show signs of life in the fifth. Three straight RBI knocks from Taylor Schwartz, Brooke Schwartz, and Annika Ball got the Vikings on the board, and a blooper from Hailey Allen drove home two more.
One inning later, the Schwartz sisters hit back-to-back RBI singles again, and just like that, it was just 8-7.
As Cruse and her teammates made their way back into the dugout, it was the Mountaineers that were in the dugout throughout the game that helped keep them sharp.
“The girls that are there putting in the work every day, they keep us alive,” Cruse said. “They come positive no matter what. They show us why we’re there and why we’re on the field. They always keep us up, so it’s really nice.”
Cruse’s second home run was just a solo shot, but it pushed the lead back to two and helped settle down a nervous Rainier dugout.
“I knew it was gonna happen,” Rainier coach Katie Qualls said. “She thrives in environments like this. If she can just calm down a little bit, that’s all it takes. Her swing is there, she puts the work in, so it’s just a matter of time.”
In the seventh, Elaina Henry allowed a one-out double, but she got the next two batters out to retire the side and end the game. Henry battled through all seven innings, even working through a comebacker that ricocheted off the side of her head.
Taylor Schwartz, the Viking who hit the line drive, came out to check on her after the play, and the two exchanged friendly head taps before Schwartz headed back to first.
“(Henry)’s an animal,” Qualls said. “You love having her in the circle, and you love having her at shortstop. But today, it was ‘we want to win, we want (Cruse) at third, and they both were just so strong.”
Cruse finished with five runs batted in, and Gracie Lantz and Green finished with a run and an RBI apiece. Mia Naval, Layla Hill, and Peyton Tsagris added a hit each, and Henry also drove in a run while drawing two walks and scoring twice.
“It’s a different atmosphere here, and we have a lot of young kids that have never experienced this,” Qualls said of her team’s performance. “We’ve very proud of them.”
In her final high school game, Taylor Schwartz, a Centralia College volleyball commit, finished with three hits and two runs batted in. She also scored twice.
Brooke Schwartz also added three hits and two RBIs, and Zoella Zavodsky finished with two doubles in four trips to the plate. Calliope Schultz went 2 for 2 and scored twice, and Allen finished with one hit, her two-run single.
The Vikings ended their season 7-11 overall, and Taylor Schwartz was their only senior according to the team’s roster on the Washington Interscholastic Activities Association website.
Rainier (11-8) will return to Fort Borst Park on Friday morning, when the remainder of the district tournament kicks off. The Mountaineers will face Pe Ell/Willapa Valley, the Pacific 2B League champion that sits at 16-5, in a quarterfinal.
A win would give the Mountaineers up to three chances to earn a state bid, while a loss would send them to the elimination bracket, where they would have to win their next game to earn up to two shots at a state berth.
“To spend three more days together having fun, I think we’re all gonna be happy for that,” Qualls said. “PWV, they’re a threat. We’ll see what we can do. We’ll work hard to stop them, and if not, we’ll look forward to the next one.”
As for what Rainier will do during those three days between games, Cruse had a pretty good idea.
“I’m gonna go hit and see if I can keep it going,” the junior said with a laugh.
