SHORELINE — In the bottom of the sixth inning at Meridian Park Field on Monday, the Glacier Peak baseball infield gathered around Brody Monica on the mound.
Facing a surging Shorewood team that loaded the bases after whittling Glacier Peak’s 3-0 lead down to 3-2, the junior had a second to breathe before attempting to secure the third out.
“I was struggling a little bit trying to throw strikes, and they just told me to stay locked in. That they were going to take care of me,” Monica said, recalling the brief meeting. “I could just get a ground ball, they’ll get the out. Just throw strikes at him.”
As it would turn out, the moral support was all that would be required of the fielders for the next at-bat. Pitching to a full count, Monica managed to get a swing-and-miss to strand all three runners and protect Glacier Peak’s slim lead.
Heading into the final frame, the bats took care of the rest.
Junior Lucas Keller and senior Jake Doman drove in three insurance runs between the two of them, and junior David Landis retired the side in the bottom of the frame to lock up a 6-2 win for the Grizzlies (2-0) and against the Stormrays (2-2).
It’s early in the 2026 season, but Glacier Peak has displayed the ability to come out on top in crunch time. After scoring all three runs in the final two innings of their 3-2 comeback win against Woodinville on March 12, the Grizzlies followed it up by punching back from against the ropes on Monday.
“I think we build on (this by) just keep playing for each other,” Glacier Peak coach Bob Blair said. “The game isn’t over until the last out of the seventh, and you keep fighting whether you’re ahead or behind, and you just got to keep plugging away.”
Through two games, that’s the biggest difference Blair has noticed between this year’s group and last year, when the team finished 9-12. The players credit a stronger leadership core uniting the group, with six seniors in the batting order setting the tone and raising expectations for what can be accomplished this season.
“I feel like our leadership is way different,” Doman said. “Everyone wants to win this year. We got a bunch of great young guys, great senior captains. I think we’re all playing together really well.”
Doman broke the game open with a two-run single to left field with one out in the top of the seventh, extending the lead to 6-2 after Keller scored senior JW Grose with an RBI double three batters earlier. Senior Atticus Quist and junior Emmett Brown were each hit by a pitch to load the bases after Keller made it 4-2, and Doman capitalized by putting the ball in play after fouling off the previous two pitches.
“We just wanted to keep adding more, back up our pitcher a little bit,” Doman said. “We were confident in our guys to add more.”
Doman and sophomore Aiden Yoo led the Grizzlies with two hits and two RBI each, while Brown reached base on all four plate appearances by way of two base hits and a pair of hit-by-pitches. On the mound, junior Ryan Sundby allowed just one hit and four walks while striking out four across the first three innings before Monica and Landis finished the job in relief.
As for Shorewood, junior Danny Morgan struck out six through 3 1/3 innings, allowing five hits and two earned runs in the start. Sophomore Ryan Stevens went 2-for-2 with a walk, putting the Stormrays on the board with an RBI single to center in the bottom of the sixth before stealing second. Senior Cameron Falk brought him home with a single two batters later to cut it to 3-2.
Stormrays coach Ben Andrews was happy with his team’s performance on the mound, expressing confidence in a deep rotation that he expects will keep the team within striking distance nearly every game, if not winning them outright.
“We had a little bit of trouble getting the offense going,” Andrews said. “I liked our battle in the sixth inning to put up two, but they’re (Glacier Peak) a good team. They swung it well. We have a lot of good pitching. You saw some of our best pitching today, and they just put good at-bats together. I mean, the strategy for us doesn’t change: Keep them under three runs and we’ll be good. But yeah, we got to get the bats going a little bit more.”
Long before the late-game rollercoaster, each team breezed through the first inning. Yoo put the Grizzlies ahead in the top of the second, scoring Brown and Doman with a two-run double to right. The sophomore infielder worked a 3-0 count before taking strike one. Afforded the opportunity to stay patient for the pitch he was looking for, Yoo got it on the fifth one.
“I was looking for a fastball, and I got it a little inside,” Yoo said. “I got a little jammed, but I still pushed it out. It felt pretty good, and I just started running.”
The Shorewood fielders tagged out Yoo as he advanced to third base, but the damage was done. Glacier Peak’s 2-0 lead carried through to the fifth inning, where Brown worked a full count before driving in Quist with a single to center field.
Monica kept the Stormrays bats at bay through his first two innings of relief, and even after he got into a jam in the sixth inning, Blair’s confidence in him never wavered.
“I believe in him,” Blair said. “I knew he was close and right around there. … He’s been pitching since last year for us, and I have confidence that he can get out of any jam. He’s just that kind of competitive kid.”
With their first league game coming up against Arlington on Friday, the Grizzlies are planning to keep doing what they’ve been doing, with hope that their bats and arms keep working in harmony.
“I think we look really good so far,” Monica said. “Just keep everything going. Keep the other team low in runs, and the bats are just going to keep getting more hot as the season goes on.”
