CHENEY— The Blackhawks were scheduled to take on the Blue Devils in first-round district action at the SportsPlex in Walla Walla on Saturday, May 14.
But the team was unable to play the game because Cheney High School Prom night was taking place that evening. Eight players would be out of the lineup, including battery mates Maddie McDowell and Pyper Cagle and shortstop Parker Cagle, all key starters in the Blackhawks’ infield.
So Cheney was forced to forfeit the game and now face elimination should they lose their next game.
“I tried to have the game rescheduled,” Head Coach Gary Blake said. “I called the Walla Walla coach and explained our situation and asked him if we could move the game to Friday. He said no. I then asked if we could change the game time to 10 a.m. Saturday morning, which would give us time to play it and get the girls back home for prom night. Again his answer was no. Had the roles been reversed and they needed to reschedule, we would’ve accommodated them.”
Blake was equally frustrated with the powers to be at the Cheney School District.
“Before COVID—for the past 17 years prom night was on the last weekend in April. I don’t know why it was change to the second weekend in May,” he said. “The district knows that when the playoff’s are scheduled.”
Blake said on Monday, the Walla Walla coach relented and said he would move the game time to 11 a.m. Saturday, but Blake said that still wouldn’t give the team enough time to play it and get back to Cheney in time for the girls to get ready for the prom.
The forfeit dropped Cheney into the losers bracket and put the Blackhawks against Kennewick Wednesday. The winner is still alive in postseason play, but the loser’s season ends.
“We played Kennewick the first game of the season and beat them 2–1 in extra innings,” Blake said. “I think we have a good chance to beat them Wednesday if we play up to our capability. We’d then need two more wins to move on to the state tournament.”
The game against Kennewick was played after the paper went to press. Look for the results and recap in the May 26 edition of the Free Press.
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