Bulldogs Cruise to 8-1 Win Against Columbia Basin to Advance to Saturday

LONGVIEW, Wash. - The Bellevue Bulldogs defeated Columbia Basin convincingly 8-1 in game six of the 2025 NWAC Baseball Championship on Friday afternoon at David Story Field.

The Bulldogs scored their first run of the game in the third inning, tacking on three more in the fourth and two in the fifth to take a 6-1 lead. They then added two more in the eighth to roll through to the following round on Saturday.

The Bellevue pitching staff did not need much support as starter Terry Hayes went five innings, allowing one unearned run on five hits with one walk and five strikeouts. Relief pitcher Ethan Thomas took care of the rest, picking up a four-inning save as he limited CBC to one hit with two walks and five punchouts.

Bellevue put up the most runs in a game in the tournament thus far. Jackson May brought the first run home on a sacrifice bunt in the third. Ollie Hogan had an RBI double in the fourth to score Brandon McKinley. Hogan later scored on an error. Drew De La Cruz drove the first of his three RBI with a single. He later drove in two more runs in the fifth on a double.

Later in the eighth, Braeden Reese doubled to score Eliot Oster. Reese later scored on an RBI single by Noah Fields to end the scoring. Fields and De La Cruz led the Bulldogs with two hits each.

Jacob Reece for Columbia Basin scored the team's lone run, finishing with a double and two hits. Dylan Schlenger made the start for the Hawks, allowing six runs, four earned in five innings. 

Bellevue moves on in the tournament as they will next face the loser of Umpqua vs. Tacoma on Saturday at 11 a.m. Columbia Basin finishes a strong overall season with a 30-22 record, placing second in the East Region.