District 10 - Game 1: 6/23/2007

The 11 year old All Stars opened the District 10 tournament with a tough 6-5 loss to Auburn. Kyle Anderton and Riley Higgins each homered and Riley added a 2-run double in the 6th inning to close a 4-run deficit to within one run. Kent plays next against Fife-Milton-Edgewood on Sunday 6/25.

District 10 - Game 2:

The Kent 11s broke out the bats with an impressive four-inning 18-0 win over FME. Devin Riley, Riley Higgins, Connor Sims, Kyle Anderton, and Ray Neevel each homered for a total of 9 runs. Offensively it was a total team effort, as they went 16 for 26 at the plate for a stellar .615 batting average, with all players getting on base at least once. Devin Riley pitched four strong innings, allowing only two hits, striking out four while not allowing any walks. The Kent 11s move on to play Steel Lake on Tuesday 6/26.

District 10 - Game 3:

The power surge continues for the Kent All Stars with an 11-0 win over Steel Lake. The team had four more home runs, one each by Devin Riley, Riley Higgins, Connor Sims, and Kyle Anderton. Drew Griffin added 3 RBIs in the winning effort. Kyle Anderton was sharp in pitching 4+ innings and the team got solid relief efforts from Kevin Thomson and Ray Neevel. Kent will play next on Wednesday 6/27 vs. Federal Way American.

District 10 - Game 4:

The boys from Kent came out hot in the first inning scoring 7 runs while bringing 13 batters to the plate. Hits by 10 players netted an impressive 12-1 five-inning victory. Kevin Thomson led the offensive effort with 3 hits while Riley Higgins and Drew Griffin had two hits each and Connor Sims had 2 RBIs. The team turned in an impressive defensive effort, committing no errors and allowing only three FWA runners to reach base. The pitching was equally impressive, as Devin Riley went 2+ innings with relief support from Kevin Thomson and Ray Neevel, throwing a total of only 46 pitches for the game. The Kent 11s now move on to a semi-final match-up against Chinook on Thursday 6/28.

District 10 - Game 5:

The Kent All Stars continue their hot streak with another impressive victory, 15-1 in four-innings over Chinook. The bats at the top of the order led the way as Devin Riley (4-for-4, one HR), Riley Higgins (4-for-4), and Connor Sims (1-for-3) drove in 7 runs on 5 extra-base hits. Pitching was efficient again with Kyle Anderton and Devin Riley combining for a 1-hit shut-out, allowing only three base runners. The pitching was supported by outstanding catching by Connor Sims and another error-free team defensive effort, with all defensive put-outs occurring in the infield.
Kent will now meet Auburn on Friday 6/29 in the district championship game (Kent must beat Auburn twice to be the tournament champion). The fan support for the 11s has been incredible all week and the team really appreciates it. Please come out and watch the team as they face off against Auburn for the district championship.

District 10 - Game 6:

The Kent 11s battle Auburn for six innings to notch a tight 6-5 victory in less than ideal weather conditions, forcing a second “winner take all” championship game on Saturday 6/30. Auburn opened up the game with 3 runs in the first two innings before Kent got on the scoreboard with a run in the 3rd inning on Connor Sims’ double and and an infield out by Kevin Thomson. Kent then explodes for four runs in the 4th inning on Riley Higgins’ 3-run homer and a solo shot from Kyle Anderton. Devin Riley pitches five solid innings, allowing four runs and striking out three before turning it over to Kevin Thomson to work the six inning. Kent’s weeklong standout team defense comes into play again in the 6th inning as Auburn gets the tying run on 2nd base. Auburn’s lead-off hitter then hits a hard grounder to Kyle Anderton at first, who tags the bag and freezes the Auburn runner off 2nd base and throws to Devin Riley who tags him out in a rundown, resulting in a drive-killing double play. Kevin then strikes out the next batter to secure the victory.
Incredible team effort against a very formidable opponent. The Kent 11s will now play Auburn again Saturday morning for the district championship.

District 10 - Game 7:

Kent opens up the game with a run in the first inning and gets three more in the 2nd on Riley Higgins’ 3-run homer (his team-leading 5th in the tournament). Kevin Thomson then hits a solo shot in the 3rd for a 5-2 lead and the two teams exchange runs before Auburn gets three runs in the 4th inning to tie the game at 6. Kyle Anderton pitches 3 2/3 gutsy innings with 4 strikeouts before giving way to Kevin Thomson. In the top of the 5th, Brandon Parks comes through with a clutch 2-out single to left driving in Drew Griffin. Devin Riley follows that up with a double to the left field wall to score Brandon for an 8-6 lead. In the bottom of the 5th, Auburn threatens again with two base runners and their leadoff hitter at the plate, who then hits a soft liner to shallow right field. Adam Weeks, playing 2nd, makes a great play and runs it down for the crucial 3rd out, shutting down the Auburn rally.
The Kent bats come alive again in the top of the 6th with five hits to score four more runs. Kevin Thomson and the great Kent defense, highlighted by an impressive catch of a foul ball in right field by Riley Higgins, shut the door on Auburn in the bottom of the 6th to win 12-6 and clinch the district championship. In the two championship games against Auburn, the Kent defense did not commit an error, which was a critical part of these team victories.
The Kent 11s now move on to the State tournament in Kirkland (Everest Park, 500 8th St. South). Our first game will be Saturday July 14th @ 1pm. The coaching staff, the players, and their families would again like to thank all the Kent fans for the phenomenal support we received all week. It definitely made a difference and we hope that you will come support these great kids at State. GO KENT!!!

WA State - Game 1: 7/14/2007

The 11s opened up the tournament with a close 5-4 victory over Yakima National West. Devin Riley led the offensive effort with 2 hits and scored 3 times. Brandon Parks had a hit and scored once and Kevin Thomson and Drew Griffin each had doubles. Connor Sims and Drew each had RBIs. Kyle Anderton pitched 5 solid innings. He also made a fine defensive play in the top of the 6th by fielding a hard-hit groundball, tagging 1st and throwing to 2nd base for a double play to shut down a Yakima rally and secure the victory. Nice win by the team to start tournament play. Next they face Richmond on 7/15.

WA State - Game 2:

The boys came out flat against Richmond and lost their first tournament game 4-2. Next up Spokane Southwest.

WA State - Game 3:

The boys put the loss against Richmond in the rear view mirror with a commanding 11-0 win over Spokane SW. The bats came alive with 11 hits by 8 different players, including 2 RBIs each by Drew Griffin and Connor Sims. Kyle Anderton, Kevin Thomson and Connor Sims combined for a one-hit pitching effort. The boys now move on to play LaCamas on 7/19.

WA State - Game 4:

The winning streak continued with a decisive win over LaCamas, 12-1 in five innings. The boys broke out the bats again with 11 hits, including homeruns by Kyle Anderton and Connor Sims. Drew Griffin went 3-for-3, and Kevin Thomson went 2-for-3 with 3 RBIs. Riley Higgins and Sam Burtis each had a hit and scored. The pitching staff of Kyle Anderton, Ray Neevel, and Devin Riley was extremely efficient in only allowing 7 hits while throwing a combined 67 pitches. The 11s will now face Salmon Creek on Saturday 7/21.

WA State - Game 5:

Kent played another solid game in beating a good Salmon Creek team, 14-4 in four innings. Connor Sims had an incredible game offensively, hitting 3 homeruns and a double to drive in 9 runs!! Ray Neevel also added a homerun and Devin Riley, Kevin Thomson, and Kyle Anderton each had multiple hits. Kevin Thomson started the game and went 2 and 2/3rd solid innings, including 7 strikeouts, and was relieved by Ray Neevel and Devin Riley. The boys now move into the top 4 with a rematch game against Richmond.

WA State - Game 6:

The 11s proved that the first game against Richmond was a fluke by beating them soundly in the rematch, 11-1 in four innings. Connor Sims started the scoring with a homerun in the first inning. Richmond answered back with a run of their own in the bottom of the first. After that it was all Kent with the boys scoring 5 runs in the 3rd and 5 more in the 4th. Leading the way offensively was Devin Riley with a homerun and Drew Griffin went 2-for-3 with a double and 2 RBIs. Kyle Anderton pitched another solid game, allowing 4 hits in 3 innings. Ray Neevel came in to close out the game in the 4th. Kent puts its 4-game win streak on the line in the semi-final game against Eastlake tomorrow night.

WA State - Game 7:

The boys ended their tournament run with an exciting 11-9 loss to Eastlake, placing 3rd overall out of 13 teams.
The game was a seesaw battle from the beginning. After Eastlake scored 1 in the top of the first, Kent answered back on Kevin Thomson’s 2-run homerun to left. In the 2nd, Kent tacked on two more runs on Kyle Kenney’s first tournament homerun. After Eastlake scored 4 in the top of the 3rd to take the lead 5-4, Kent manufactured a run on a single by Connor Sims and then worked three consecutive walks (to Kyle Anderton, Tim Angevine, and Ray Neevel) to tie it up at 5-5. Eastlake scored two in the 4th and three more in the 5th for a 10-6 lead. Kent wasn’t done, however, as the boys scored three of their own in the bottom of the 5th on a walk by Ray and consecutive singles by Kevin, Kyle K, and Devin Riley and a single by Riley Higgins. After Eastlake put up one run in the top of the 6th to make it 11-9, Kent mounted a rally in the bottom of the inning with runners (Kevin and Devin) on 2nd and 3rd and two outs and Connor at the plate. After working the count to 3-and-2, Connor hit a fly ball down the leftfield line which the Eastlake fielder barely tracked down for the final out.
The coaches and parents are extremely proud of what the boys accomplished during the District and State tournaments. 3rd in State was a great finish and something to build on for next year. The coaches, players, and their families would like to thank all the Kent fans who traveled to Kirkland to support the team. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did. GO KENT!!