South Kitsap leads Wenatchee 8-0 in the fourth inning of the Class 4A state semifinals against Wenatchee in Pasco.

If the Wolves hold on, they will play the Puyallup-Wenatchee winner Saturday at 4 p.m. for the championship. South lost in the finals to Skyview a year ago, and lost two games to unbeaten and N0. 1 ranked Puyallup earlier, including a 10-0 loss in the district championship game.

There was a lot of conjecture about how coach Marcus Logue would use his pitchers this weekend. He started Logan Knowles today, but Mac McCarty is now pitching. He’s also got Cooper Canton available. Looks like he’ll probably go 3-3-1 today. I’m guessing he’ll start McCarty on Saturday. The submariner bounces back in a hurry and should be ready.

In case you missed it, here’s a story I wrote about McCarty.

WIAA is live blogging the semifinals. Click here. 

The championship game will be lived stream, but here’s a cost: $9.95. Go to wiaa.com and click on tournament central. You can follow all of the state’s championship events this weekend. The WIAA’s doing a really good job go with updates etc.

UPDATE: It’s still 8-0 going to the top of the fifth.

Bremerton’s two Olympic League basketball MVPs — Sawyer Kluge and Deonte Dixon — have made their decisions on where they will play basketball in college.

Kluge’s heading to Roseburg, Oregon, where she will play for Umpqua CC. Former Olympic High athlete Ashli Payne, who scored 51 points in one game for Umpqua this season, will be a teammate. Kluge averaged 22.6 points, 11.7 rebounds and 4.5 steals per game her senior year.

Dixon, a smooth 6-foot-2 guard who averaged close to 18.9 points and 3.1 steals  a game, is headed to Peninsula College in Port Angeles.

Quick hits

Working on a story on Mac McCarty, the South Kitsap junior. He’s 10-1 with a 0.66 ERA in 64 innings. He’s struck out 88, walked 28 and allowed just 30 hits. Pretty impressive. Oh, he’s also hitting .388. The Wolves play Wenatchee in the Class 4A state semifinals Friday in Pasco. McCarty’s getting lots of looks from colleges and told me the expects to sign in the fall. … At least five SK seniors will also play college baseball: Logan Knowles (Naval Academy), Tyler Ludlow (Jamestown), Tyler Pinkerton (Everett CC), Tanner Paulson (Treasure Valley CC in Ontario, Oregon) and Conner Sharp (still undecided, but Jamestown, Treasure Valley and other see-cees in the region are possibilities, said coach Marcus Logue). … Drew Vettleson, a two-time Washington State Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year (2007-08 and 2008-09) from Central Kitsap is rehabbing in Florida from a broken bone in his hand that put him on the DL in mid-April. Vettleson’s an outfielder with the Double-A Harrisburg Senators in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He was hit by a pitch and broke the pisiform bone, a small rounded carpal bone situated where the palm of the hand meets the outer edge of the wrist. … Kaitlyn Oberg, a middle infielder who helped Lehi High win the Class 5A state softball title in Utah, will play softball at Olympic College next year. .. The annual senior high school all-star baseball and softball games will be played Monday, June 9, at the baseball field at the Kitsap County Fairgrounds & Events Center. The Kitsap Athletic Roundtable sponsors the events. Tickets are $5 for adults, $3 for seniors, students and military and free for kids 12 and under.

Some linkage

“Hubris. Arrogance. Complacency. Inattention. Sloth. All more formidable than the San Francisco 49ers.” — Art Thiel of Sportspressnw.com writes about the Seahawks as they return to the practice field for their OTAs (organized training activities). He also writes about OG James Carpenter and how the Seahawks are excited that the former first-round pick, a bust to date, could be on track for a break-through season.

Joe Posnanski takes a look at baseball’s batting average. He takes you back to when it was established (and why) and he examines how it has changed over the years. It’s a fun and informative read, for those who like to analyze statistics and for those who don’t.

If you don’t watch HBO’s Game of Thrones, then skip this link. But if you do, you might be interested in NFL.com’s All-Game of Thrones football team.

Shooting from the hip as the sun sets on Memorial Day and I’m thinking about my dad sitting in the back of a plane, landing and taking off escort carriers — known as “baby flat tops” or “jeep carriers” — in the Pacific and Atlantic during World War II. He was a radarman/gunner on torpedo bombers. I can’t even imagine what it must have been like. He tells the story of looking out the small window where he sat in the plane and he could see what looked like the entire Pacific fleet — big carriers, cruisers, destroyers — chugging towards the Philippines and Okinawa. Everywhere he looked, he said, he could see U.S. ships.

“I was never so proud to be an American,” he said.

Here’s some other things I was thinking about while driving home from Longview, where I watched the final day of the NWAACC baseball championships on Monday:

* NWAACC baseball, at the championship level, is about as good as it gets. I’d rather watch good college baseball than the pros. The emotion and energy is unreal. And when you get two rivals like Edmonds and Bellevue going head-to-head, you never know what’s going to happen. They met for the eighth time this season and Edmonds prevailed 7-6 in a  back-and-forth, momentum-changing game. It was the sixth NWAACC title in eight years for the powerful North region. Everett won it all in 2013. My son’s an assistant athletic director at Edmonds and Paul Gehring, the former Bremerton High/Centralia CC/York College catcher who assisted at Olympic College before taking an assistants job at Edmonds, is the strength and conditioning and catcher’s coach at Edmonds. Casey Bohlmann, a Central Kitsap/Bellevue CC/Hawaii-Hilo pitcher, is a first-year assistant at Bellevue, where his responsibilities include recruiting and helping coach pitchers.

* I admit it. I never appreciated Ray Allen as much as I should have when he was with the Sonics. Best clutch shooter of all time.

* Marshawn Lynch was a no-show when the Seahawks visited the White House last week. His mom told the Seattle Times the Seahawks’ running back “just didn’t want to go.” A lack of respect for President Obama? Not at all. It was consistent with how he handles off-the-field things. He doesn’t give many interviews and makes few public appearances. He had no obligation to show up in D.C.

* U.S. soccer coach Jurgen Klinsmann isn’t coming clean with his reasoning for leaving Landon Donovan off the World Cup team. Klinsmann said: ‘The ones we chose are just that inch ahead of ones we didn’t choose in performance terms.” An inch? Donovan came up an inch short. I’m not buying it. If there are 23 U.S. players better than the 32-year-old Donovan, then the U.S. should not be an underdog at all; they should contend for the title.

* Some former NFL players are suing the league, alleging that professional football knowingly supplied them with illegal narcotics and addictive painkillers. Even if the NFL encouraged it, nobody held a gun to the players heads and forced them to take pills or have someone poke needles in their bodies.

* Willie Bloomquist is the Mariners’ best option at shortstop right now, especially against left-handed pitching. Everybody forgets that he was a regular most of 2011 (hit .266 in 381 at bats with 20 stolen bases) when he helped the Diamondbacks win the NL West. Bloomquist proved that he could play shortstop on an everyday basis and hit leadoff for Arizona. He hit .302 the following season (318 at bats) while serving as the everyday guy for an extended period, and hit .317 an injury-plagued 2013 season when he was limited to 48 games and 150 at bats. Yeah, I know he’s hitting .192, but that’ll go up in a hurry if he gets regular at bats. Besides, Brad Miller is hitting .150 and Nick Franklin’s at .138.i

* The Derek Jeter Farewell Tour comes to Safeco Field on June 10-11-12. He’s among the greatest Yankees in the storied history of that franchise. Nobody will wear No. 2 again. It’ll be retired alongside No. 3 (Babe Ruth), No. 4 (Lou Gehrig), No. 5 (Joe DiMaggio) and No. 7 (Mickey Mantle). Not sure where he ranks among those immortals. He’s never led the league in hitting or won an MVP, but has there ever been a more class act than Jeter? Oh, by the way, no Yankee in history has more hits or has played in more games than Jeter. There’s not a lot of players I’d pay money to see, but I’m gonna pay money to see Jeter when he passes through Safeco next month.

* The day was Oct. 28, 1988. I turned 36. The same day, I wrote a column for The Sun, explaining why the grandstands at Roosevelt Field should not have been torn down. It should have been refurbished. For newcomers, Roosevelt was a grand old stadium that sat where there’s now a parking lot at Olympic College next to the Warren Avenue Bridge. I’ll turn 62 this October and still cringe when I look at that parking lot. I’m still from the school that says when you have a piece of usable recreational property you hang onto it. You can’t replace a field in the core of the city. Twenty-six years later, we know that to be true.

* Yeah, I was going through some old boxes, trying to downsize a bit when I came across the column on Roosevelt Field. I also came across a 1946 Bremerton Bluejackets program. It cost 10 cents back in the day. That the was inaugural season of the Bluejackets (yes, lower case J; the current West Coast League Kitsap BlueJackets spell it with a capital J). The Bremerton Bluejackets were a member of the Western International League, a Class B professional team. They were managed by Sam Gibson and the team was referred to as the “Gibsonmen” at times. Pitcher Joe Sullivan and second baseman Frank Plouf were the only Bremerton players on the roster that year. Oh, by the way, the Bluejackets, who were only around three seasons, played their games at Roosevelt Field.

CJ Allen, a freshman from North Mason, didn’t take long to make a name for himself at the college level. The Washington State hurdler won the 400-meter intermediate hurdles at the Pac-12 meet on Sunday in Pullman. He won it in a lifetime-best 51.14 seconds. Ruby Roberts, a senior from Kingston, was seventh in the 1,500 and 21st in the 5,000. Here’s a story on the meet, courtesy Washington State athletics

Seahawks stuff

A couple videos from NFL.com about two of the elite players from 2013. And yes, they are Seattle Seahawks. Check out the best of Richard Sherman and the best of Russell Wilson. And did you know that Marshawn Lynch is making a movie … about himself growing up in Oakland? It’s called “Family First,” and is scheduled for release at the end of the year. Coach Pete Carroll likes what he sees from this year’s rookie class. Here’s his analysis of some, courtesy ESPN.com. Finally, some insight on Sherman’s contract, according to Peter King of SI.com (scroll to the bottom of the page; it’s the 10th item).

Villopoto out for outdoor season

Poulsbo’s Ryan Villopoto, 25, will not defend his outdoor AMA motocross season, opting for surgery to repair a lingering injury on his left knee. Villopoto won his fourth straight Supercross championship this season. Jeremy McGrath is the only other rider to win four straight supercross titles. Villopoto had surgery last week. Motocross is off-road motorcycle racing; the stadium version of motocross is supercross. Villopoto won seven supercross races this season, including the last four. He led the last 80 laps of the season, only fueling the feeling that he’s already one of the greatest riders in motorcycle history.

Recommended reading

“Sometimes the New Breed Stat Guys aren’t so good about accepting the vagaries of a very complex game.” That’s a pretty good line from Bob Ryan, the veteran Boston Globe scribe. He wonders if baseball fans care about the new breed of stats, and I’m right there with him on this one.

Larry Stone of the Seattle Times writes about Washinton State football coach Mike Leach, who writes about Geronimo. Legendary hoops coach Don Meyer dies. Meyer spent his career working at small colleges.

California Chrome’s Triple Crown bid could come up short by a nose. The burning question: Nasal strip or no nasal strip? Will New York horse-racing officials allow one?

Finally, some quick hits

Central Kitsap grad and Tacoma resident Troy Kelly will get 14 starts to make $563,133 or earn 354 FedExCup points to retain his PGA Tour card. Kelly had surgery on his right knee almost a year ago, and played in five Web.com Tour events earlier. He’s been working with nationally-recognized coach Brian Mogg, who was born in Bremerton and grew up in Lakewood. Dick Mogg, Brian’s dad, played basketball and baseball at Bremerton High and went on to captain the Seattle Pacific College basketball team.

Central Kitsap grad Drew Vettleson, Washington Natoinals outfield prospect from Central Kitsap, remains on the disabled list. Vettleson started the season at Double-A Harrisburg Senators. Vettleson, who was acquired from Tampa Bay, suffered a broken hand on April 13 when he was hit by a pitch.

Aaron Cunningham will be at Cheney Stadium this week, playing for the Reno Aces, the Arizona Diamondbacks’ Triple-A club. The Aces play a four-game series against the Tacoma Rainiers. Game times Monday and Tuesday are 6:05 p.m. with an 11:35 a.m. start Wednesday and a 7:05 p.m. start on Thursday. The South Kitsap grad hit .195 in April but has got his average up to .269. The 28-year-old outfielder had a walk-off game-winning walk in the 10th inning on Saturday and has collected at least one hit in eight of his last nine games.

Erynne Lee and the UCLA Bruins will compete in the NCAA Women’s golf Championship, May 20-23, at the Tulsa Country Club in Oklahoma. Lee’s a junior and three-time first-team all-Pac-12 golfer from Central Kitsap. Central Washington’s Kasey Bielec, a junior from North Mason, was named to the Daktronics NCAA Division II West Region second team. Bielec, a third baseman-designated hitter, batted .339 with team-leading totals of seven homers and 39 RBI.

Daniel Jewett, a junior from North Kitsap, helped Omaha win the Summit League regular-season championship, but the Mavericks (30-20 overall, 14-9 league) are not eligible for the 2014 Summit League Tournament due to its status as a reclassifying Division I program. Jewett, an outfielder who played for the Kitsap BlueJackets last season, was second in hitting (.333) and fourth in RBI (29) for Omaha. He played at Truman State (an NCAA Division II program) for two years before transferring to Omaha.

Cheyenne Barger, a sophomore softball player at Treasure Valley (Ontario, Ore.) is worth mentioning. She put up some amazing numbers this season. The big right-fielder/first baseman hit .600 with 22 home runs and 80 RBI heading into the NWAACC tournament. She struck out just twice. Boise State’s among the schools recruiting her. The Chukars were one of four teams left in the tournament, which was rained on Sunday. The top three seeds — Mt. Hood, Clackamas and Wenatchee Valley, in that order — were also alive going into Monday’s action. Olympic College lost 6-3 to Wenatchee Valley and 8-6 to Douglas, B.C., the fourth seed. They mixed in a wild 17-11 victory over Pierce between those losses.

ESPN NFL draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. gives the Seattle Seahawks a C-plus for their drafting prowess this year. SI.com gave the Hawks a B-minus. They got a B-plus from CBSsports.com. What do you think?

Here’s Kiper’s thoughts:

Seattle Seahawks: C+

Top needs: WR, DL, OL, TE

Needs: B
Value: D+

Summary: There simply isn’t a better player development program in the NFL right now than Seattle’s. The players the Seahawks draft — the players I’ve spent many hours evaluating and making calls on — are often players that evolve, improve and become something new after Seattle drafts them. While they’ve had some notable misses in Round 1, both in value and development, they’ve been awesome thereafter. So when Seattle moved down to No. 45 overall and still had the chance to take either Stephon Tuitt or Marqise Lee, both players that would have been nice fits at pick No. 32, you almost had to laugh because you knew the Seahawks would go in another direction. Paul Richardson was the pick, and he hits a big need, though his lean frame is a concern. The key will be that he maintains his explosiveness as he adds some needed strength. The presence of him and a healthy Percy Harvin, will keep safeties on high alert. I also thought O-line was a necessity, and Justin Britt adds depth, but he was my 21st-ranked offensive tackle, and struggles to create any movement in the run game. I saw him as a likelier fit in the third or fourth round. Again: They trust their development, and they showed it again when they took what I’d kindly refer to as a deep sleeper in Jimmy Staten, a D-tackle I had at No. 44 at the position in my rankings. The Seahawks know what they are doing, but it’s fair to say they had a couple value questions again today. I look forward to seeing what becomes of these players.

2014 draft picks
Rd Pk Pos Player College
(2) 45 WR Paul Richardson Colorado
(2) 64 T Justin Britt Missouri
(4) 108 DE Cassius Marsh UCLA
(4) 123 WR Kevin Norwood Alabama
(4) 132 OLB Kevin Pierre-Louis Boston College
(5) 172 DT Jimmy Staten Middle Tenn. State
(6) 199 T Garrett Scott Marshall
(6) 208 S Eric Pinkins San Diego State
(7) 227 RB Kiero Small Arkansas

Here’s what SI.com (Chris Burke and Doug Farrar) had to say:

As usual, the Seahawks drafted unconventially, ignoring need at times in favor of players with specific athletic skills. The lack of a dominant guard could come back to bite them later, and I’m not totally sold on the prospects of second-round offensive tackle Justin Britt. However, getting Colorado speed receiver Paul Richardson, also in the second round, could be a major steal.

Alabama’s Kevin Norwood, a bigger target for the end zone and the red zone, adds a key component to Seattle’s offense. UCLA defensive lineman Cassius Marsh, who committed to Pete Carroll back in the USC days before changing his mind, reunites in an end/tackle role. Watch out for Marshall offensive tackle Garrett Scott as the possible sleeper pick — he has a lot of the qualities you’d like to see in a top-flight pass-blocker.

I have to knock Seattle down for passing on the two best guards in this class — Xavier Su’a-Filo and David Yankey — because it is a position of enormous need that wasn’t sewn up in free agency, either.

Grade: B-minus

Pete Prisco of CBSports.com gave the Hawks a B-plus.

The Seahawks traded out of the first round to add picks and added a lot of good players. Second-round receiver Paul Richardson can fly and I love fourth-round picks Cassius Marsh and Kevin Norwood. Grade: B-plus

Here’s how NFL.com wrapped up the Seahawks’ draft: 

Another draft in which Pete Carroll gets the guys he wants where he wants. There were perhaps some reaches in there, but you have to really like adding Richardson and the underrated Norwood on offense. Marsh can be very versatile in the Seahawks’ scheme.

Bleacher Report gave the Hawks a B:

Upgrading at wide receiver was important for Seattle and without many other holes, the team’s draft was solid.

SOFTBALL

Western Oregon’s Bridjet Box (sr., South Kitsap/Olympic College) was 3-for-3 with three home runs and five RBI in a 20-9 win over Central Washington in the GNAC Championship game on Saturday. Box was named the MVP of the tournament after  hitting .750. For the season, she hit .379 with seven homers and 41 RBI for the Wolves (33-21), who advance to the NCAA Division II playoffs.

Western Washington’s Haylee Baker (sr., Bainbridge/Bellevue CC) hit .354 with eight HRs and 46 RBI for the Vikings (30-14), who finished second to Western Oregon in the GNAC regular season.

Erin Kinney (fr., Bainbridge) is hitting .405 for Linfield (33-7), which won the Northwest Conference and opens play in the NCAA D3 regional playoffs next. Kinney, who has been used at designated hitter most of the time, has four homers and 21 RBI in 29 starts. She’s played in 39 games.

GOLF

UNLV’s Carl Jonson (jr., Bainbridge) was named to the first-team All-Mountain West Men’s Golf Team. Jonson is second on the Rebels in scoring (72.64) and 10^th in the conference. He has three top-10 finishes in 10 events this season with a fourth-place showing at the Jackrabbit Invitational. He has shot in 60s three times with a low of 67. The Rebels will compete in the NCAA regionals on May 15-17 at Rich Harvest Farms in Sugar Grove, Ill.

UCLA’s Erynne Lee (jr., Central Kitsap) was named to the first-team All-Pac-12 Women’s Golf Team for the third straight year. Lee posted her third college win in September at the Mason Rudolph Classic and has seven top-10 finishes this season with an average score of 71.7. Lee and teammate, Alison Lee, the consensus No. 1 player in women’s college golf, were named to the 2014 U.S. Curtis Cup team in march.

TRACK & FIELD

Ruby Roberts (jr., Kingston) wasn’t supposed to run the 3,000 meters, but she did and her third-place finish was the difference as she helped Washington State beat Washington 82-81 in a Pac-12 dual in Pullman on Saturday. Roberts ran 9:35.38. She was also second in the 1500 (4:30.13). Cameron Brink (so., Bainbridge) won the discus (154-11) and CJ Allen (fr., North Mason) was second with a PR in the 400 hurdles (48.14) for the WSU men, who lost 84-79 to the Huskies.

Western Washington’s John Hoskin (so., Bainbridge) won the javelin (181-2) at the St. Martin’s Invitational on Saturday. WWU competes in the GNAC Championships on May 9-10 at Monmouth, Ore.

BASEBALL

Tyler Baumgartner (sr., Central Kitsap/Bellevue CC) is hitting .309 for the Oregon Ducks (34-13, 13-8 Pac-12). Baumgartner has started all 47 games in the outfield and has one home run and a team-high 37 RBI.

Kasey Bielec (jr., North Mason) is hitting .340 with seven homers and 38 RBI for Central Washington (28-18, 17-14 GNAC). Pitcher Kurtis Pitcher (sr., Klahowya/Western Oregon/Olympic) is 2-2 with a 4.07 ERA for Central. The lefty has started nine games and pitched 42.1 innings. Central opens GNAC tournament play on May 8 against St. Martin’s at Western Oregon.

Outfielder Daniel Jewett (jr., North Kitsap/Truman State (Mo.)/Omaha University) is hitting .324 for the Mavericks (23-19, 8-8 Summit Conference) with a home run and 22 RBI.

Josh Sontag (so., Central Kitsap) helped St. Martin’s (18-28, 14-17 GNAC), reach the conference tournament as the No. 3 seed. Sontag, who is hitting .122 with a home run in 29 at bats, developed into a starting pitcher and was 2-5 with a 5.52 ERA in 60.1 inning. The 6-foot-2 right-hander got a no decision, but pitched 5.2 strong innings in an 11-6 win over beating Central Washington in a key game on Saturday. Sontag’s started 10 games.

Linfield’s Joe Stevick (jr., Olympic) has appeared in 13 games, pitching 20.2 innings of relief for the Wildcats (33-7), who won the Northwest Conference and will play in the NCAA D3 playoffs. Stevick a 6-6 right-hander, is 0-2 with a 3.48 ERA. He has struck out 11, walked two and allowed 17 hits.

A.J. Milyard (fr., North Kitsap) appeared in two games as a relief pitcher for Whitworth (13-22).

Two former Olympic College Rangers and Kitsap BlueJackets — pitchers Devin Smith (jr., West Seattle) and catcher Dustin Dhanani (jr., Blaine) — are playing at NCAA Division I Alabama A&M (20-29, 12-9) of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. Smith is 4-6 with a 4.31 ERA, and is the workhorse of the staff with 79.1 innings pitched in 15 appearances (11 starts). Dhanani is hitting .234 and has started 30 games.

Daniel Orr (jr., Kingston/Everett CC) led Corban University (29-26) in virtually ever major hitting statistic. The first baseman batted .374 with 23 doubles, four triples, three HRs and drove in 48 runs.

Catcher Curtis Wildung (jr., North Kitsap) is hitting .224 for Pacific Lutheran (25-14, 16-8 Northwest Conference) with four home runs and 14 RBI. He has started 33 games.

NWAACC Baseball

Everett CC: Ben Tamm (fr., North Kitsap) is 2-1 with a save and 0.54 ERA in 33.1 innings in 10 relief appearances. He has 30 strikeouts, 15 walks and allowed just 15 hits. … Michael Wood (fr., South Kitsap) is 3-5 with a 1.57 ERA in eight starts. He’s pitched 57 innings, allowed 47 hits, fanned 41 and walk d21.

Tacoma CC: Quinn Eldridge (so., Chimacum) is 5-0 with a 1.12 ERA for the Titans, who are 32-2 and ranked No. 1 in the NWAACC poll. Eldrige has appeared in nine games, four as a starter. He’s pitched 32 innings, struckout 24, walked nine and allowed 24 hits and five runs. … Cory Main (fr., South Kitsap) is 3-0 with a 1.44 ERA as a reliever. He’s pitched  18.2 innings and has allowed 11 hits, fanned 12 and walked three.

Here’s Olympic College’s hitting statistics.

Here’s Olympic College’s pitching statistics.

NWAACC Softball

Here’s Olympic College’s hitting statistics. 

Here’s Olympic College’s pitching statistics.

Go to nwaacc.org for complete NWAACC stats. Note: Cheyenne Barger of Treasure Valley is on pace to win the triple crown. She’s hitting .603 with 21 home runs and 79 RBI.