Wahkiakum baseball gets early wins

The Wahkiakum High School baseball team has the bats cracking in the early season, as they have started the year with two wins in which they outscored their opponents 18-9 between the two contests.

It's been an impressive 2-0 start for the Mules, as they defended home turf in their season opener against Winlock on Mar. 12 and followed that with a dominant road win versus Raymond/South Bend on Mar. 17.

Wahkiakum Head Coach Matt Mogush is ready to get back in the dugout and for his players to be back along the basepaths. Though the program will feel the loss of two of its key contributors last season, much of the team is returning. "I'm super excited to get the season underway," Mogush said. "We graduated only two seniors last year; they'll be heavily missed, as they were both standout athletes. With that being said, we're returning a lot of guys."

Participation in the program this year has been "excellent," with 28 student-athletes coming out to play, enough to build a JV and varsity schedule. Mogush is also optimistic about the program's future, as this year's roster is "junior and freshman heavy."

When the Mules hosted Winlock, it didn't take long for the game's tenor to be established. Though Winlock scored in the first frame, Wahkiakum jumped out to a 6-1 lead when it was their turn to bat. Things would only get more out of hand for the Cardinals as the Mules added to their lead in the second and cruised to a 15-6 victory.

Rusty Morrison was a standout on offense for the Mules, stealing multiple bases and batting in four runs on four hits. Starting pitcher Emory Filkowski gave Winlock batters fits, striking out six batters in three innings while allowing just two hits and three runs.

It was a solid team effort for the Mules, and getting on base wasn't a problem. Wahkiakum amassed 10 hits during the game and flexed their patience at the plate with 12 walks. Once on base, the Mules proved to be tough to tame, accumulating nine stolen bases in the contest.

Next up was a trip to South Bend High School to take on the Ravens. Similar to the win against Winlock, Wahkiakum jumped out to an early lead and never looked back.The Mules capitalized on early errors and some hot hitting to put runs up quickly. Wahkiakum scored eight quick runs in the first two innings to remove much of the suspense from the result. Aiden Scott started on the mound for the Mules, and his pitching was as strong as Wahkiakum's hitting. Scott held the Ravens to zero hits and zero runs in three innings while striking out six batters, walking none. Scott is a freshman this season, but the lefty is already carving out a role for himself. "Aiden Scott, lefty on the mound, was a standout on the team last year as an 8th grader playing up, and was impactful at the plate batting clean up," Mogush said.

The Mules again proved to be pesky thieves on the base paths as they racked up 11 stolen bases. Morrison was again a pain to deal with for the Ravens' pitcher, as he stole multiple times during the game. Junior Parker Leitz had a nice day at the plate with two hits on four at-bats and added a couple of stolen bases as well. Wahkiakum ended up as a 13-3 victor over the Ravens and will be looking to keep the momentum rolling.

Mogush said that Leitz will be one of the players to watch this season, as he is coming off an impressive sophomore season. "Parker Leitz led us in batting average last year as a sophomore," Mogush said. "His hard work and dedication to both his athletics and education are paying off, as I see tremendous improvement each year from him in all sports." Coming off a season in which the Mules finished 8-12, Mogush is less focused on results and is hoping the group is ready to learn and bring a winning mentality and attitude. "My expectation for the guys is to be coachable! Control what you can, and that starts with attitude and effort," Mogush said. "If we're coachable and can learn from our mistakes, I think the results will come."

If the players approach the game the right way, the results will follow, and that's a takeaway he hopes his team realizes beyond the backstop. Mogush hopes the team learns "valuable life lessons." "Responsibility, accountability, and building trust within themselves, teammates, and coaches," Mogush said. "I want them to believe hard work pays off."

Barring bad weather, Wahkiakum will be back in action against Ocosta on Mar. 21.