With a berth at State in the bag, the Friday Harbor baseball team may have taken its foot off the gas just a bit.

Following back-to-back losses at the Tri-District playoffs, the Wolverines (14-5) tumbled into the state 1A tournament as the region’s No. 4 seed, and will open the state 1A tournament against Montesano (18-3) in Anacortes, Saturday, at noon.

After clinching a berth at State with a 14-4 victory over Bellevue Christian at home May 12, Friday Harbor fell to Chimacum the following day in the Tri-District second round, and then couldn’t erase an early deficit despite a late-game rally in a narrow 8-6 defeat at the hands of Cascade Christian  in the consolation bracket, May 14, at Skagit Valley College.

The Wolverines scored five runs in the last three innings but were unable to close the gap. Senior Shawn Cutting stroked three doubles and drove in three runs in leading the team back into the game.

“You’ve got to give the guys credit to battle as much as they did,” Coach Rich Warin said.

Cascade Christian tallied six of its eight runs in the third inning to take a 7-1 lead at the midway mark.

“It was just one of those innings where things didn’t go our way,” Warin said. “But they hit some shots.”

With the win over Bellevue Christian, the Wolverines clinched a berth in the state 1A tournament for the sixth time in 12 seasons.

— Scott Rasmussen