Sandifer, Panthers beat Monroe 2-1 pitches Panthers

SNOHOMISH — Ryan Sandifer has been striking out opponents all season.

So one more strikeout wasn’t a big deal for the Snohomish pitcher.

The senior struck out four batters in the top of the seventh inning to get out of a bases-loaded jam and preserve a 2-1 Panthers’ victory over Monroe in a Class 4A District 1 semifinal game Monday afternoon at Snohomish High School.

The Panthers move on to face Lake Stevens, 1-0 winner over Mount Vernon on Monday, in the district championship game at 7 p.m. Thursday at Everett Memorial Stadium.

“We just kind of hung on there in the seventh inning,” Snohomish head coach Kim Hammons said. “Boy, Monroe came at us hard in the seventh inning and they battled. All of our games against Monroe this year have been games just like this. They’re never out of contention. They’re always battling trying to beat you.

“It was 1-0 here at Snohomish and we beat them 6-3 in eight innings up there. Just your typical Snohomish-Monroe ballgame: 2-1. Ryan Sandifer just became a bulldog in the seventh inning. He struck out four guys. Monroe battled and battled and battled. They gave us a scare. But Sandifer shut them down.”

Sandifer (9-0) scattered four Monroe hits — with the first not coming until the fifth inning — and finished the game with 11 strikeouts. The right-hander will pitch at Everett Community College next year.

“There’s not many better pitchers around in this area,” Monroe head coach Eric Chartrand said. “The kids battled. He’s a tough pitcher. I thought they put out a good effort.”

The first two Monroe batters reached base in the seventh, before Sandifer got the first of his four strikeouts. A single by Bailey Sarto loaded the bases for the Bearcats prior to the second strikeout of the inning. With two outs, Sandifer notched his third strikeout against Noah Miller, who sprinted to first base when the pitch flew past the glove of the Snohomish catcher.

A run scored on the play, bringing Monroe to within one before Sandifer’s fourth and final strikeout of the inning.

“Ryan Sandifer just took charge,” Hammons said. “And he’s the hero. He’s done it all year. I wasn’t going to take him out. I would’ve had a mutiny on my hands.”

After his final game on the Snohomish field — the district championship and loser-out games on Thursday are at Everett Memorial Stadium — Sandifer was emotional as he raked the mound for the last time.

“This is my mound,” he said. “It’s always been really nice to pitch on it. I’ve worked on it, done everything to it, I know it like the back of my hand. … It’s pretty emotional. I didn’t think about it until I started working on it.”

It wasn’t just on the mound that Sandifer shined. He hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the fifth inning that proved to be the game-winning run for Snohomish (21-0).

“Jake Mulholland drives in a run with a double and then Ryan Sandifer hits a sacrifice fly,” Hammons said, “and Ryan Sandifer wins the game on the bump and then he wins the game with a sacrifice fly.”

Chartrand, meanwhile, was pleased with the way his Bearcats battled the top-ranked Class 4A team in the state.

“This team is really learning how to win baseball games, and really learning how to compete,” Chartrand said. “I’m just really proud of them. It would be very easy to fold against (Sandifer), to get down a couple and just figure the game’s over. But I was proud the boys came out and fought. It was close.

“We lost to the No. 1 team in the state. I told my boys when we started this thing, ‘The pressure’s not on us.’ Let’s just go out and play baseball. That’s a really good team. There’s a reason they’re ranked where they are. And we were right there.”

Monroe (10-11) faces Mount Vernon in a loser-out district game at 4 p.m. Thursday at Everett Memorial Stadium.

“I just told the boys that as long as we get a chance to still be together, it’s a pretty good deal. We’re just going to go out there and give our best effort,” Chartrand said. “We’ve got (junior pitcher Jared) Cogar ready to go. It’s a good spot to be in.”

At Snohomish H.S.

Monroe0000001—141

Snohomish010010x—281

Alex Spahman and Eric Pino. Ryan Sandifer and Ben Dmochowsky. WP—Sandifer (9-0). LP—Spahman. 2B—Noah Miller (M), Jake Mulholland (S), Dmochowsky (S), Brad Morgan (S). Records—Monroe 10-11, Snohomish 21-0.