The Enumclaw High baseball squad’s season came to a sudden end Saturday afternoon as the Hornets suffered a heartbreaking 2-1 setback to Auburn Mountainview in the West Central/Southwest bidistrict 3A tournament at Foss High’s picturesque diamond in Tacoma.

The score stood at 1-1 with two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning in the winner-to-state, loser-out tilt between the Hornets and Lions.

Enumclaw’s senior southpaw Andrew Olson had been on cruise control throughout the tight contest, allowing only two hits, so Hornet coach Eric Fiedler let the ace of his staff pitch to Mountainview’s right-handed slugger Brandon Williams.

With the count sitting at two balls and no strikes, Olson left a tantalizingly fat fastball out over the plate for an instant too long and Williams sent the ball screaming over the fence to end the contest.

“I throw one lousy pitch and of course Williams murders it to end our season,” an annoyed Olson said, shaking his head.

Fiedler discounted the notion of putting Williams on base intentionally.

“It would have been ridiculous to put the winning run on first with no one aboard,” he said. “It just makes baseball sense to pitch to him with two out and no one on. We don’t just give in. At that point we are going to make Williams swing.”

Despite the disappointing loss, Fiedler was upbeat.

“I told the boys after the game that they deserved to leave the playing field with their heads held high,” he said. “They had a heck of a campaign.”

The Hornets’ lone run came in the top of the sixth inning after the Lions had already broken the scoring ice in the bottom of the fifth frame.

Laboring against a relief pitcher after senior standout hurler Cody Hebner had exited the duel, Cody Hughes Grant Hathaway managed back-to-back doubles with Hughes scoring the tying run.