SPORTS

by Neil MacDonald

Blaine fastpitch funfests feature late inning rallies, runs aplenty
Blaine played .500 ball this past week, splitting both its North Cascades Conference and Blaine Invitational games.
After losing 21-20 to Meridian on April 17 at Laurel, the Lady B’s edged Granite Falls 11-10 on April 19 at the Pipe in NCC action. They repeated the pattern on April 21 at the Blaine Invite, bouncing back from a 7-4 loss to Bellingham with a 13-1 win over Sultan.
The Falls affair was supremo. Trailing in the sixth, the Lady B’s scored three runs on three hits and a walk to take a 7-6 lead into the seventh.
Krista Walter got the first two Tigers to ground out in the seventh and was within an out of a win before a walk, an error and two doubles let the Cats out of the bag and it was 10-7, G-Falls.
Blaine promptly put together a five-hit, four-run seventh to win. Katie McLaughlin started it with a double into right-center. Kristina Beljean singled into center, which GF’s CF misplayed, allowing McLaughlin to score and Beljean to reach second. Liz Sipes then boarded a base on an error. Walter beat out a bunt to fill the bases with Lady B’s.
Alisa Burk singled to score Beljean. Francis, who went 3-for-5 for the day, put the ball into left field and Blaine’s speed did the rest. Burk scored from third to tie it and Walter came home from second like an electric arc in search of a ground to slide across home plate with the winning run.
The Lady B’s and T’s used a month’s supply of runs in the 21-20 Meridian melee. The offensive outburst ended with the Lady T’s scoring a lone run in the bottom of the eighth to win. Meridian had the lead after each of the first five innings, edging ahead 6-5, 7-5, 8-5, 11-7 and 13-7 before the Lady B’s parlayed nine walks and three hits into 11 runs for a 18-13 lead going into the bottom of the sixth. The Trojans then scored three runs to close it to 18-16.
The Lady B’s promptly extended their lead to 20-16 in the top of the seventh. The T’s Cala Morris, who got the win in relief, helped her own cause, singling in the tying run with two out in a four-run Meridian seventh. Kate McCloskey won it for the Lady T’s in the eighth driving home the winner with a two-out single.
In the Blaine Invite, B’ham’s 7-4 win over Blaine was the Red Raiders first victory of the season. B’ham followed with a 9-6 win over Chief Sealth. Ferndale stopped Meridian 11-1 and Sultan 14-2. Lynden Christian lost 11-2 to White Rock Thunder No. 1, then beat White Rock Thunder No. 2 by 8-3.
Walter threw a tidy two-hitter in the Lady B’s win over Sultan. Sonia Beljean went 2-for-4, with three RBIs, and Kristina Francis also hit 2-for-4.
The Lady B’s journey to Sultan for a game on April 30 and host Lynden Christian on May 2 at
the Pipe.

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Boys track streak ended
Blaine boys (6-1) suffered their first loss at a North Cascades Conference track meet at Nooksack Valley on April 19 and Borderite Steve Burden ran the 400m in 51.5 to finish fifth at the Eason Invitational in Snohomish April 21.
Lakewood boys tallied 89 points to win the NCC quad encounter. Blaine was second with 63; Nooksack, third with 60 and Lynden Christian trailed with 44.
Matt Timothy, Blaine’s premier sprinter, was unable to compete in the 200m, long jump and 4x100 relay after suffering a pulled muscle in his hip while leading the pack in the boys 100 meters. Timothy’s injury not only took him out of the 100m, but gave the opposition a considerable advantage in the parceling of points for a final score.
A healthy Timothy may not have given Blaine a seventh straight victory, but the gap between the Borderites and the Cougars would have been considerably closer.
The Double B’s had five firsts – Andrew Martin (high jump, 6-0), Nick McGee (shot, 52-4), Nathan Haslip (110m hurdles, 17.03), Burden (200m, 23.3) and 4x400m relay team of Martin, Haslip, Cory Crews and Burden (3:32.42).
McGee’s put was a school record for the 12 lb. shot, his toss of 52-4 going almost three feet further than the old mark. The 4x400 team’s 3:32 was seven seconds better than the team’s previous best effort.
Crews (100m, 11.85), Burden (400m, 51.57) and Haslip (300m hurdles, 44.5) added seconds. Martin (javelin, 149-2), Crews (300m hurdles, 44.85) and Dan Marchio (800m 2:15.50) got thirds.
Becky Riddle led the Lady B’s with wins in the discus (99-9) and shot (37-6). Maria Jackson ran a personal best of 1:03.57 to win the 400m. Kimberly Harmening placed third in the pole (7-6) and javelin (88-6), the latter distance exceeding her previous PB by 12 feet, six inches. Candice Chambers, with a 28.73 in the 200m, got the Lady B’s other third.
Blaine competes April 28 in the Tisdale Invitational at Nooksack , then hosts Lynden, Whidbey and Meridian in the Borderites’ final home meet May 3 at 4 p.m.

Jones beats Boyce in Lady Bs tennis
Ferndale overwhelmed Blaine 7-0, not losing a set in Lady B tennis action in the Golden Eagles’ aerie on April 20.
Blaine’s Brenda Jones defeated Anacortes’ Kimarie Boyce 6-3, 6-1 in No. 2 singles to garner the Lady B’s lone victory in a 5-1 Borderite road loss to Anacortes in girls’ tennis action on April 18.
Borderite Kate Laurenson extended the Storm’s Katie Niles to three sets in No. 1 singles before Niles won the 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 encounter as Squalicum took a 7-0 tennis victory from the Lady B’s on April 16.
Blaine-Ferndale results:
Singles: No. 1 – Katie Pessl (F) d. Laurenson (B) 6-1, 6-2. No. 2 – Alissa Watts (F) d. Brenda Jones (B) 6-0, 6-0. No. 3 – Tess Winds-Johnson (F) d. Sam Freeman (B) 6-0, 6-1. No. 4 – Lisa Ngai (F) d. Shaneen Brown 6-0, 6-0.
Doubles: No. 1 – Mary Lokar-Emmylyn Aronical (F) d. Linsey Freeman-Jess Freeman (B) 6-0, 6-2. No. 2 – Jennifer Martin-Danielle Martin (F) d. April Oswald-Jacqueline Thomas (B) 6-0, 6-0. No. 3 – Ellen Ngai-Melissa Pugmire (F) won by forfeit.
Blaine-Anacortes results:
Singles: No. 1 – Amber Fairbanks (A) d. Laurenson (B) 6-4, 5-7, 6-4. No. 3 – Erin Shiflett (A) d. Sam Freeman (B) 6-1, 3-6, 6-1. No. 4 – Emma Moore (A) d. Kristina Tremblay (B) 6-3, 6-1.
Doubles: No. 1 – Allison House-Shelby Morrison (A) d. Brown-Mandy Haslip (B) 6-0, 6-0. No. 2 – Heather Thomson-Bethany Streber (A) d. Oswald-Thomas (B) 6-2, 6-0.
Blaine-Squalicum results:
Singles: No. 2 – Lani Holmes (S) d. Jones (B) 6-0, 6-2. No. 3 – Leah Volland (S) d. Sam Freeman (B) 6-0, 6-0. No. 4 – Holly Gundred (S) d. Tremblay (B) 6-2, 6-0.
Doubles: No. 1 – Amy Cheney-Chelsea Walter (S) d. Brown-Haslip (B) 6-4, 6-1. No. 2 – Amy Farris-Melanie Merz (S) d. Taylor-Jess Freeman (B) 6-1, 6-0. No. 3 – Kim Servoss-Staci Sredin (S) d. Oswald-Thomas (B) 6-2, 6-2.

Mulholland, Braumberger card Blaine's lowest scores
Blaine boys put together a team total of 224 to tie Meridian for fourth and fifth place in a North Cascade Conference tournament at Shuksan Golf Course on April 17.
The Borderites were 12 strokes back of winner Lynden Christian, five back of second-place Mt. Baker and three behind third-place South Whidbey.
Brendan Mulholland paced the Double B’s with 43. Kyle Goddard shot 44, Matt Weins carded 45. Kevin Farmer, Adam Dolan and Ben Washburn all shot 46.
The Lady B’s five-member contingent combined for a 318 to card Blaine’s third straight fifth-place finish in girls NCC golf action at Lake Padden on April 16. The top four team scores were Meridian 255, South Whidbey 265, Mount Baker 289, Nooksack Valley 305. Lakewood did not play.
The Trojan’s Caitlin Opstad, MB’s Anna George and SW’s Hayley Mansford tied for low medalist with 47s.
Blaine’s Haily Braumberger posted the lowest score for the Lady B’s, carding a 54 to finished tied with Meridian’s Rachel Olson for ninth place overall. Other Blaine scores were: Tamara Allen 59, Jeni Armstrong 64, Jeni Lott 69 and Erica Johnson 72.
Braumberger, who shot 126, had Blaine’s lowest score in the 18-hole NCC girls’ tourney at Shuksan on April 18. Allen and Johnson carded 132s and Erin Flores shot 168. Blaine fielded four golfers and did not qualify for consideration in the five-person team scoring, which was won by Meridian.

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