The Mount Si baseball team assured a place in the postseason in a big way last week.

The Wildcats secured a playoff berth with three wins, two by the mercy rule.

The boys used solid pitching and consistent offense to take care of Bellevue, 11-5, Wednesday, April 22.

Michael Davenport pitched six strong innings, and Matt Bankston drove in two runs with a triple, as Mount Si handled a Wolverines team that beat them twice in March.

Davenport said his aim had been to come out strong and throw strikes.

“These guys are tough,” he said. “I knew I had to come out here and shut them down — get pop ups and ground balls, and let my defense do the work.”

Davenport is undefeated this season and has probably worked harder than anyone else on the team, said Chaz Carr, Wildcat head coach.

“He wanted his senior year to be memorable, and so far, he’s making that happen,” Carr said.

The Wildcats broke out to a 4-0 lead after two innings, helped by a Bellevue error and a single by Rossco Castagno in the bottom of the second that scored Trevor Lane.

Zach Guyer, Zack Robinson and Castagno also scored runs in the first two frames. Refusing to give up his first hit until the fourth inning, Davenport allowed five hits on the day, walking two and striking out five.

Bellevue scored a run in the fourth, but the Mount Si bats responded with three more runs in the bottom of the inning. A triple by Bankston scored Castagno and Dustin Breshears. Bankston then scored on a single by Tim Proudfoot, making it 7-1. The Wildcats scored three more in the fifth to extend the lead to 10-1. Mount Si held off a late Bellevue push against Davenport and reliever Kyle Cantalini, closed things out.

Castagno expects this success to continue.

“We’re going to work hard the rest of the season,” the leadoff hitter said.

Mount Si’s week as a whole went well, with two mercy rule wins, 13-3 in five innings over Sammamish on Monday, April 20, and 13-0 over Mercer Island, also in five innings, on Friday, April 24.

Back to the Safe

The good news continued for the ’Cats off the field, after Mount Si boosters announced Tuesday, April 21, that they had sold over 1,000 tickets to that night’s Mariners’ game. As a result, the M’s extended an invitation for the Wildcats to play another game next season at Safeco Field.

Several of the Mount Si players were honored in a pregame ceremony, and player Matt Price got the honor of throwing out the ceremonial first pitch prior to the game, which was against the Tampa Bay Rays, the defending American League champions.

“The Valley rallied around us,” Carr said

Now, the junior players get to have a very special senior year. Mount Si’s varsity program made over $6,500 as a result of the sale.