Dewers stay unbeaten at State

Jul. 24—Box score

At Wheeler Field

I-5 TOYOTA 6, LAKESIDE 1

Lakeside 000 000 1 — 1 6 3

I-5 Toyota 401 100 X — 6 8 0

Pitching — Oram (W) CG, 7 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 3 K, 2 BB. Highlights — Velez-Fucal 1-3, 2B, 2 RBI, R; Overbay 2-3, 2 R; Eport 3-3, R

The Centralia I-5 Toyota/Mountain Dew train kept on rolling Monday at Wheeler Field, as the Dewers checked just about every box in a 6-1 win over Lakeside Recovery on the third day of the American Legion AAA state tournament.

Things started with Brayden Oram on the hill. The Tumwater righty had to deal with some rare July precipitation early but powered through it, and after two days of Lyle Overbay pulling his starters early to keep their pitch count down, the Centralia skipper let Oram roll all seven innings in a complete game.

"When I saw rain I was kind of nervous, but playing catch felt fine and warming up felt good, so I knew I was going to have a good day," Oram said.

Oram needed just 71 pitches to toss six shutout innings, before finally allowing Lakeside to get on the scoreboard in the top of the seventh. He finished with three strikeouts and gave up six hits and two walks.

And for the second straight day, the I-5 defense showed out behind its pitcher, turning three double plays in the final four innings, including one in the fifth started by a diving stop by W.F. West's Evan Stajduhar.

"Those are huge," Overbay said. "If we don't turn those double plays, it's a different story. We've got to that point where we've got guys comfortable in their positions, and that's the main thing. Now they can play and go out and do their thing."

On top of the twin killings, Joaquin Velez-Fucal (North Thurston) set the tone with a diving snag at first base in the top of the first inning, and Kaleb McNeely (Timberline) picked a backside runner off of first from behind the dish.

"It's a good feeling when you're on the bump and you have a good defense behind you," Oram said. "You can rely on them and throw strikes, throw to contact and see what happens."

I-5 struck for four runs in the bottom of the first inning, powered by a Velez-Fucal 2-RBI double.

Moshie Eport, the lone Centralia Tiger in the Centralia starting lineup, led the way with a 3-for-3 day at the plate. Across two starts and a pinch-hitting appearance, Eport has gotten off to a 5-for-6 start at the state tournament, with a double, an RBI, and three runs scored.

"He's been hitting real well," Overbay said. "The biggest thing has been finding him a spot because there were a ton of guys who were hitting well too. He's just having really good at-bats."

Alex Overbay added a pair of singles.

The last remaining undefeated team in the tournament's double-elimination bracket, Centralia I-5 Toyota/Mountain Dew will take on Whatcom Post 7 at 4 p.m. on Tuesday.