The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

YAKIMA – The Dayton High Softball team's season came to an end Saturday at the State 2B Softball tournament in Yakima. The Bulldogs won two of their four games over the weekend, but their efforts did not result in a top-four trophy winning position.

The Lady Bulldogs' opening game did not go as planned, as they were shutout by a strong Pe Ell/Willapa Valley team. Dayton only managed two hits over the seven innings, from Mia Becker and Kellie Moore. Pe Ell had their bats rattling as they scored 16 runs on 18 hits.

"Our first game was an eye opener," said Dayton Assistant Coach Desirae Jones. The 16-0 loss sent Dayton to the consolation side of the bracket, ending hopes for a state title.

DHS came back strong after their opening-round defeat with a 19-9 win over Colfax. "The girls were able to come back and get fired up against Colfax," said Jones.

Heidi Dobbs, Madison Mings, and Megan Robins got three hits apiece in a stellar 17-hit performance as a team. The Bulldogs scored 18 runs over the first three innings to set the tone for the afternoon, never looking back as they put away Colfax with relative ease.

The game ended after five innings due to the 10 run mercy rule, and Colfax was sent packing. "It was nice to see them respond after the first game loss," commented Jones.

Following their victory in the second game Friday, Dayton opened up Saturday with another strong performance against Concrete, coming away with a 14-2 victory. Pitcher Savannah McFarland opened the game with six straight strikeouts, and ended the game with only four hits allowed and 10 strikeouts over the five-inning game.

The Bulldogs backed up the dominant effort put in by McFarland with another offensive outburst. Multiple hits from Scully Castorena, Hanna Becker, Mia Becker, and Dobbs helped lead the Dayton sluggers to the win.

The Concrete win set Dayton up for an afternoon showdown against Brewster. The Lady Bulldogs opened the top of the first with a run, but were quickly behind, as Brewster had an 11 run first inning. This proved to be too much, as Dayton was never able to get the lead back, and fell 17-7 in another shortened game. "This was a pretty defeating inning. But, they picked themselves up and battled on," Jones said.

A valiant effort from the Dayton girls resulted in 12 hits, but it was not enough as Brewster kept their momentum going, scoring their 17 runs on 16 hits. The last game of the season for the Lady Dawgs saw Mings, Mia Becker, and Castorena all put in multi-hit performances. Unable to cut the lead to under 10 runs, the Bulldogs season ended after the fifth inning.

"Terry (Robins, Head Coach) and I are very proud of this team," Jones said. "They were led by seniors Kellie Moore, Madison Mings, and Hope Lopez. They played with a lot of heart and represented Dayton and what it means to be a Bulldog. They battled and won the District Championship and made it to the fourth round of the State playoffs. We couldn't ask for more.

Dayton finished the season with a 17-11 record.

Pe Ell/Willapa Valley 16, Dayton 0

PWV 3 0 1 0 1 3 8-16 runs 21 hits 0 errors

Dayton 0 0 0 0 0 0 0-0 runs 2 hits 3 errors

Battery: PWV: Brooks, Adkins (6) and G. Hodel; Dayton: McFarland, Robins (6) and Mings.

HR - PWV: Elliott.

Hits - PWV: Woodward, Adkins 4, Brooks 3, G. Hodel 4, Pollard 2, Smith, Skeen, Elliott, A. Hodel 2; Dayton: M. Becker, Moore.

Dayton 19, Colfax 9

Colfax 0 0 1 5 3-9 runs 14 hits 3 errors

Dayton 4 8 6 0 1-19 runs 17 hits 3 errors

Battery - Colfax: Miller, Appel (4) and Stokes; Dayton: McFarland and Mings.

Hits - Colfax: Miller 3, Aune 2, Becker, Sheer 3, Shrope 2, Appel, Akesson 2; Dayton: M. Becker 2, H. Dobbs 3, Moore, Mings 3, H. Becker 2, Robins 3, Castorena, White 2.

Dayton 14, Concrete 2

Dayton 3 2 8 0 1-14 runs 14 hits 2 errors

Concrete 0 0 0 2 0 -2 runs 4 hits 5 errors

Battery - Dayton: McFarland and Mings; Concrete: Coffell and Stidman.

Hits - Dayton: H. Dobbs 2, Moore, Robins, M. Becker 2, Mings, H. Becker, White, Laughery, Brincken, Castorena 2; Concrete: Mathis 2, Bridge, Sheahan.

Brewster 17, Dayton 7

Dayton 1 0 2 0 4-7 runs 12 hits 6 errors

Brewster (11) 0 2 4 x-17 runs 16 hits 0 errors

Battery - Dayton: McFarland and Mings; Brewster: Markie

Miller and Urias.

Hits - Dayton: M. Becker 2, Dobbs, Moore, Mings 3, H. Becker, Castorena 2, White, McFarland; Brewster: Terrenes 3, Urias 4, Markie Miller 4, Y. Sanchez, C. Sanchez 2, Maret Miller, Kelpman.