Nikole Weber described her Kentlake fastpitch team as “blood thirsty” heading into Tuesday night’s re-match with Tahoma.
“Just mentally we’ve been really looking forward to the game,” Weber, a senior co-captain who is the ace for Kentlake in the circle.
“That last loss was tough. We really wanted to take first place.”
Indeed the Falcons were out for vengeance and to make a statement to the rest of the South Puget Sound League, beating the Bears 15-5 in five innings.
At first it looked like it was going to be a back and forth contest like the first meeting March 24 when Tahoma beat Kentlake 5-2.
In the top of the first the Bears jumped out to a 2-0 lead but it wasn’t long before the Falcons took control of the game, scoring eight runs in the bottom of the first, with every run helping them out in the race for first place.
“During the game, everyone’s intensity was up,” Weber said. “And to beat them by a lot, it feels good.”
Jessie Richardson, junior co-captain who patrols the infield at short stop or second base, said Kentlake wanted to come back from the early season loss to Tahoma.
“We have a lot of history with them,” Richardson said. “Especially my class. And (Kentlake has) a lot of rivalries with them.”
One bright spot for Tahoma was junior catcher Shelby Carter who was 2-3 with a double, a home run and two runs scored.
Lexi Engman collected four RBIs on 2-3 hitting for Kentlake with a triple while Erin Crowley was 3-4 with a double and two RBIs.
With the win, Kentlake moves to 9-1 in SPSL North play and 13-1 overall, while Tahoma drops its first league game and is now 9-1 and 12-2 overall.
With only a handful of games left, the game could well have decided who will win the division this year, with the tie breaker coming down to power points which Kentlake has in spades thanks to its 10 run victory.
“It’s a good barometer of where we can be at the end of the season,” Richardson said. “We really needed that to make sure we’re coming along the way we needed to.”
The Falcons take on Federal Way and Kentwood to wrap up the week while the Bears take on Auburn and Auburn Riverside on Wednesday and Friday.
