Glacier 13U ends run in semifinals

The Glacier Babe Ruth 13U All-Stars run

through the Northwest Regional Babe Ruth Tournament in Kennewick,

Wash., ended Saturday after losing a seesaw battle with Bend,

Ore.

Glacier jumped out to an early 3-0

lead, but Bend came back to go up 5-3. The teams traded leads again

before Bend stormed ahead 10-6.

In the seventh and final frame, Jed

Nagler crushed a 2-RBI triple to close the gap to 10-8. Then with

two outs and a man on, Jesse Walburn put a shot into left field

that looked to be the game-tying base hit. Bend’s left fielder,

however, made a diving catch to end Glacier’s rally.

Colten Parker pitched four innings,

Jonny Sapa threw two innings and AJ Wetsch closed out the game on

the mound.

“It was a great season,” Glacier coach

Brent Wetsch said. “The boys played hard as a team and that’s what

it takes.”

Glacier opened the tourney with three

consecutive wins to make the final four. They topped Alberta 5-2,

Seattle 12-5 and Rock Springs, Wyo., 15-9 in pool play to earn a

spot in the single-elimination bracket where they faced Bend.

The Meridian All-Stars topped Bend 10-8

in the championship to earn a trip to the Babe Ruth World Series in

Clifton Park, N.Y. Meridian topped Alberta in the semifinals, a

team that Glacier beat in pool play.

“We were one of the three best teams,”

Wetsch said.