Prep Baseball Report

WIAA 4A State Tournament - Regional Previews & Staff Picks


PNW Staff

The 2024 WIAA 4A State Tournament begins with regional action this Saturday, May 18th. 16 teams will compete at 4 various 'regional' sites in a single elimination bracket that will ultimately send 4 teams to Pasco, WA for the Semi-Finals and Finals. 

Semi-Final actions begins on Friday, May 24th with the winners advancing to play for the State Championship on Saturday, May 25th. 

Below are our regional previews for all the action as well as our staff picks 

4A REGIONAL PREVIEWS & STAFF PICKS

Dan Jurik - PNW Scouting Director
Alex Ross - Area Scout, Draft Content
Philip Roe - Associate Scout, Spring Coverage, Content
Dylan Grenz - Associate Scout, Spring Coverage, Content

Richland Regional

#9 Kentridge vs #8 Gonzaga Prep
#16 Woodinville vs #1 Richland

Both Kentridge and Gonzaga Prep got it done over the weekend with their seasons on the line. It’s a great 8 vs 9 matchup that feels like a complete coin toss. Assuming both teams give the ball to their seniors, ‘24 Dominc DesMarais (Kentridge) vs. ‘24 Luke Brown (Gonzaga Prep/Spokane Falls commit) has the potential to be a fantastic pitcher’s duel. We were high on Woodinville in the preseason and while they had their ups and downs during the regular season, they are certainly playing their best ball down the stretch. Everyone knows about the power arms of ‘24 Tyler Jones (Oregon commit) and ‘27 Eli Jones (Oregon State commit) but juniors ‘25 Levi Grothen and ‘25 Cooper Angellar are quietly having outstanding years. Coupled with the late resurgence of ‘26 Sam Courtney and this staff has the potential to throw up a lot of zeroes over the weekend. The #1 overall seed and our top team in the Power 25, the Richland Bombers enter the tournament as the only undefeated team in 4A with a 23-0 record. The duo of ‘24 Dallas Bennett and ‘24 Alec Ammerman (Grand Canyon commit) at the top of the rotation has been ruthlessly efficient all season. Senior bats ‘24 Chris Daniels (New Mexico State commit) and ‘24 John Corbin (Saint Martin’s commit) bring a ton of experience and power to the offense while being surrounded by exceptional athletes like ‘24 Josh Woodard, ‘24 Rayce Reeves, ‘25 Carter Upmeyer and ‘26 Hayden Galloway. 

Predictions:
Jurik: Richland
Roe: Richland
Grenz: Richland
Ross: Richland

Puyallup Regional

#10 Moses Lake vs #7 Camas
#15 Newport vs #2 Puyallup

Puyallup was the #1 team in our preseason Power 25 and they secure the #2 overall seed heading into the tournament. It’s very difficult for anyone to match their offensive depth, athleticism and pitching. The key difference this season with Puyallup when it comes playoff time will be ‘25 Mason Pike emerging as a bonafide ace. The uber talented Oregon State commit brings more explosiveness and pure stuff to the front of the rotation and allows the Vikings to load up on arms for a potential 2nd game. They face an experienced, battle tested Newport team early who features some potent senior bats in ‘24 Jace Rainey (College of Charleston commit), ‘24 Jacob Freer (Azusa Pacific commit) and ‘24 Dante Santulli (Lower Columbia commit). Moses Lake is no stranger to the playoffs and they are back in the tournament with an exceptionally young roster as they face off with Camas. ‘25 Kason Whitaker appears to be lined up to get the ball for Moses Lake and some key bats to watch include ‘25 Cruz Martinez and ‘24 Jayce Stuart. The Papermakers had a ridiculously tough schedule this season which included early matchups vs Kelso, Tahoma and Kennedy Catholic then down the stretch faced both Sumner and Puyallup. ‘24 Andrew Miller and ‘24 Diego Trujillo are likely to get the ball early in this regional for the Papermakers. 

Predictions:
Jurik: Puyallup
Roe: Puyallup
Grenz: Puyallup
Ross: Puyallup

Olympia Regional

#11 Eastmont vs #6 Tahoma
#14 Bothell vs #3 Olympia

This regional sets up one of the better potential pitching matchups between ‘24 Sawyer Wickstrom (Bothell/Utah Valley commit) vs ‘25 Trace Pruitt (Olympia/Washington commit). That has the potential to be a high pressure, low scoring affair. Tahoma advanced to the semi-finals last year after beating Olympia in regionals; they could face off again if the Bears get past an Eastmont squad that has gotten hot down the stretch this season. Uncommitted ‘25 LHP Adam Jay has been in a groove lately for Tahoma and his ability to go the distance whenever he gets the ball could be the difference marker in this regional. After Jay, Tahoma has gotten 20+ innings from 4 different arms between ‘26 Neal Burtis, ‘25 Bryson Leach, ‘24 Jackson Walker and ‘26 Sean Evans. Look for Eastmont to counter on the mound with either ‘24 Kollin P Babst Babst or ‘26 Bodie Yale, both of whom have 40+ innings this season with ERAs below 2.50. 

Predictions:
Jurik: Olympia
Roe: Olympia
Grenz: Olympia
Ross: Olympia

Eastlake Regional

#12 Battle Ground vs #5 North Creek
#13 Rogers vs #4 Eastlake

Talk about the “region of death”. In our opinion this is without a doubt the deepest and most talented region of the bunch. Realistically, any 1 of these 4 teams could end up in Pasco and it would not be a shock. Everyone who knows ball is aware of how talented ‘24 OF Jackson Hotchkiss (Battle Ground/Washington commit) is and he can change a game with 1 swing. But ‘26 LHP James Gill III and ‘27 SS Cooper McGowan have burst onto the scene this year and are huge risers in the respective classes. We were high on North Creek coming into the year and nothing has changed our outlook on the Jaguars. Between ‘25 RHP Dominic Wilson, ‘26 RHP Jack Cochran, ‘26 RHP Kody Moyer and relievers ‘24 Brock Fleming & ‘25 Cayden Christopherson, they have as much pitching depth as anyone. Rogers features maybe the best left side INF duo in the state with ‘25 3B Ian Draper (Washington commit) and uncommitted ‘25 SS Martyn Hernandez. Plus 2 power armed underclassmen ‘25 RHP Coltyn Clark (Lower Columbia) and uncommitted ‘26 RHP Talan Robertson have really stepped up on the mound for the Rams. Eastlake is the defending 4A champs and find themselves with the #4 overall seed despite replacing a massive amount of pitching experience from last year. Uncommitted ‘25 RHP Cody O’Donnell has been outstanding for the Wolves as of late and seniors ‘24 Jack Edmunds (Brown commit) and ‘24 Grady Woodward (Washington commit) are the 2 biggest power threats in this regional. 

Predictions:
Jurik: Battle Ground
Roe: Eastlake
Grenz: Rogers
Ross: Battle Ground

Semi-Finals

Jurik: Olympia vs Puyallup & Battle Ground vs Richland
Roe: Olympia vs Puyallup & Eastlake vs Richland
Grenz: Olympia vs. Puyallup & Rogers vs. Richland
Ross: Olympia vs Puyallup & Battle Ground vs Richland 

Finals

Jurik: Puyallup vs Richland
Roe: Puyallup vs Eastlake
Grenz: Olympia vs Richland
Ross: Puyallup vs Richland

Champion

Jurik: Puyallup
Roe: Puyallup
Grenz: Richland
Ross: Richland 

UPCOMING EVENTS

SHOWCASE STATE DATE LOCATION
Reign Baseball Scout Day WA 05/31 The Sandlot - Pasco, WA
Idaho Rising Stars ID WA 06/04 College of Southern Idaho - Twin Falls, ID
Portland Summer ID WA 06/05 Milwaukie High School
Washington Rush Scout Day WA 06/11 Edmonds Woodway HS
Ridgefield Summer ID WA 06/20 Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Complex
Seattle Summer ID WA 06/25 Island Crest Park - Mercer Island, WA
Spokane Summer ID WA 06/26 Whitworth University - Spokane, WA
Seattle Summer ID - Session II WA 07/02 Island Crest Park - Mercer Island, WA
Portland Summer ID - Session II WA 07/02 Wilsonville High School
Future Games (Class of 2026/27) NATIONAL 07/24 LakePoint Sports
Junior Future Games (Class of 2028/29) NATIONAL 07/24 LakePoint Sports
Senior Future Games (Class of 2025) NATIONAL 07/24 LakePoint Sports
Pacific Northwest State Games (Invite-Only) WA 07/30 Heritage High School