Conley shuts
down SK again with near-perfect pitching exhibition.
All Jim Fairweather could do was shrug his shoulders.
The South Kitsap High School baseball coach watched as Olympia left-hander Adam Conley shut down his team for a second time in less than a month.
And if Collin Monagle hadn’t hit a double down the third-base line with two outs in the seventh inning, the Wolves would have been no-hit in a 2-0 loss in the championship game of the Narrows League Tournament on Saturday at Hiedelberg Park in Tacoma.
“I’ll be surprised if there’s a team that can get him,” Fairweather said. “If there’s a better-looking guy in the state, I would like to see him.”
Both teams play at 11 a.m. Saturday with Olympia (19-2) claiming the league’s No. 1 seed into the West Central District Tournament where they play Tahoma. The Wolves (14-4) earned the second spot and face Puyallup at Heritage Park.
Conley (6-0), who signed with Washington State, finished with 13 strikeouts and threw 69 of 113 pitches for strikes. In 14 innings against SK, he’s allowed four hits and has 20 strikeouts.
Olympia also beat the Wolves 4-0 on April 17.
“I’m not really pleased with our approach against him,” said Fairweather, whose team swung several times at the first pitch. “Early in the count, it was like we were guessing he was going to throw right down the middle of the plate.”
Conley has allowed just one earned run this season and has five shutouts in six starts. He said he featured his changeup more against the Wolves and also throws a curve ball and fastball.
“Usually I try and stay locked in all the time,” Conley said. “I don’t think in the (Bridge Division) they see a lot of throwers like me — a stiff lefty with some off-speed stuff. I don’t think they have a way to prepare for that.”
In the innings that sandwiched the first and seventh, Conley was perfect. After he hit Charlie Hough and walked Brady Steiger in consecutive at-bats in the first, Conley retired 18 consecutive batters before Todd Dalrymple walked in the seventh.
“To be honest, I was unaware I had a no-no going,” Conley said. “It was only afterwards that one of my teammates goes, ‘Hey, he’s got a no-no going.’ Sure enough, the next inning a guy rips one down the line.”
It could’ve been a critical situation with runners at second and third base with two outs. That’s because SK starter Adam Douty limited the Bears to one run until the sixth.
With one out, Kramer Skidmore singled and Nate O’Bryan was hit by a pitch. Preetam Talukdar then reached first when the second baseman bobbled a ground ball to load the bases.
Douty got Carter Manning to pop out to first base, but the Bears took advantage of the extra opportunity in the ensuing at-bat when Corwin Patis hit a three-run double to left-center field.
“Adam Douty just battled his butt off,” Fairweather said. “They don’t have a four-run lead if they get at least one of the outs with the double play we botched.”
Douty’s only earned run came in the second when doubled and O’Bryan hit a two-out single to right field to give Olympia a 1-0 lead.
Fairweather said the Wolves better get used to quality pitching in the playoffs.
“We know that’s the kind of kid we’re going to have to beat if we want to reach our ultimate goal,“ Fairweather said. “The good news is we get to live another week and try to do that.”
Olympia 4,
South Kitsap 0
South Kitsap 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 1 3
Olympia 0 1 0 0 0 3 x — 4 8 0
Adam Douty and Todd Dalrymple. Adam Conley and Quinn Batt.
W—Conley. L—Douty.
