April 17th, 2013 - Mount Si is poised for a conference title

After the football season had ended, the local newspaper SnoValley Star took notice of my work and invited me to write a couple articles for them. I wrote one about the baseball team at Mount Si, which was published online and in print. However, for the upcoming football season, they went with a professional writer instead.

Original Article: http://snovalleystar.com/2013/04/17/mount-si-is-poised-for-a-conference-title

In the past couple of seasons, baseball has been one of the most successful sports at Mount Si High School — the team captured the state title in 2011, and a very strong campaign in 2012 came to a screeching halt in an upset loss to Kelso in the quarterfinals.

Many credited the success to former coach Elliot Cribby. After Cribby left Mount Si for a college in Texas, many wondered what that would mean for the Wildcats.

Enter new coach Zach Habben, who has a long history of baseball experience. Habben first played at Skyline High School, and then Buena Vista University in Iowa, and finished his collegiate baseball career at Central Washington University. After serving as the pitching coach last year for Mount Si, he was promoted to head coach after Cribby left.

The year started out with a Saturday doubleheader in the Tri-Cities. Mount Si first played defending state champion Kamiakin. The Wildcats went down early, were 5-0 after the third inning, and were only able to pick up one more run in the fifth to lose, 5-1. Despite only giving up six hits, and having six of their own, they were unable to start off the year with a win. They finished the day by playing Walla Walla, which they were able to win 12-5, and finish on a high note.

Back in the Valley, the Wildcats hosted Bothell and Lynnwood, winning both by a combined score of 22-4. On March 30, they had the special opportunity to take on Issaquah in Safeco Field, home of the Seattle Mariners. They took advantage of the opportunity, winning 10-0. They held the Eagles to just two hits, while Chase Kairis picked up the win after three innings of strong pitching. Mount Si was now 4-1.

From there, it was conference play. The Wildcats won three straight versus Juanita, Interlake and Sammamish, to put them at 7-1. On April 8, they hosted Lake Washington. After falling down 3-0 against the Kangs, they rallied back in the fourth and fifth innings to make it 4-3. In the sixth, they had three runs to go up 6-4, and seal off a huge comeback win to remain perfect in conference play.

“The biggest win we had this year is the Lake Washington game,” Habben said. “We were able to chip away at the lead and played a great game to get the win. Connor Swift pitched a great game and Joey Cotto had a great catch in the last inning to make the second out of the inning by jumping to reach over the fence to catch a potential foul ball.”

Following that game, Mount Si had an 8-0 shutout against Bellevue High School on April 10, in which Kairis threw all seven innings, allowing only three hits and throwing six strikeouts.

Habben praised Kairis for being the biggest surprise this year for the team.

“He has stepped up and filled one of the roles of a starting pitcher. He has been throwing very well this season and has stepped up for some very big games for us. This is his first year throwing on varsity, and he has been very successful throwing each one of his pitches for strikes,” he said.

After that win, Mount Si traveled to Mercer Island to take on the Islanders, but fell, 5-4. It was the first conference loss for Mount Si, and left them at 9-2.

Habben said he wishes he could redo that one.

“The only game so far I wish we could go back and play differently would be the loss at Mercer Island. We had a 4-0 lead and did not capitalize on the opportunities we had to score more runs and add to the score,” Habben said. “We let them get back into the game, and they were able to get the momentum back that we had gotten in the first two innings.”

With nine games left, Mount Si is sitting at 9-2 with a 5-1 conference record. That wasn’t an easy task, Habben said.

“KingCo 3A this year is very tough. Anything can happen at any moment, which was evident on Friday against Mercer Island,” he said.

While Mount Si did lose that one, the team still has a strong chance at the KingCo title with continued solid play. With their strong record, they have a great chance at a high playoff seed as well, and Habben does not want an early playoff exit in his first season.

“We plan on taking this season one day and one game at a time,” he said. “We can’t look ahead to anything, and must focus on what our jobs are that day and go from there. All we can do is work hard to get better each day and take care of business day in and day out.”

The Wildcats are in the midst of another great season, and once again find themselves poised to make a strong push for the state title. Habben said they still have a long way to go, but the team is headed in the right direction.