OTHELLO – CWAC opponents continued to learn Saturday that they stand a better chance of spelling Othello ace Xzyyvn Martinez’s name than getting a hit against the junior right-hander.

And while fellow righty Aiden Garza won’t trip up too many wordies, he’s just as tough on conference batting orders.

The Huskies’ 1-2 pitching punch continued its run through, keying a sweep of Ellensburg, 7-0 and 2-1, that leaves Othello, ranked third and No. 2 in the WIAA's RPI, on the cusp of its first outright CWAC championship since 2003.

“Those two guys again throwing strikes, and multiple pitches for strikes,” Othello coach Sonny Garza said. “And they give our kids confidence when they’re on the mound.”

Martinez tossed another gem in the opener, striking out eight while walking just one and surrendering a lone single in the top of the first, when the Bulldogs loaded the bases before the Othello hurler ended the threat with a strikeout.

He has yet to relinquish an earned run in conference, fanning 54 batters in 32 2/3 innings, with 10 hits and 14 walks against him.

Seattle U-bound Quade Gonzalez provided the big blast for Huskies, hitting a three-run homer to left field to stake Othello to a 4-0 lead.

Gonzalez, a more-than-capable pitcher himself, drove in four runs in the game, and Zayvier Olazcon and RJay Garza each had two hits, one of them a double, and Martinez was 2-for-3 to help his cause.

Garza outdueled Ellensburg lefty sophomore Carter Peone in the second game.

Peone struck out eight batters and surrendered just two hits, but Othello took advantage of two errors, a hit batter and a walk to push across a run in the bottom of the fifth to break a 1-1 tie.

“Carter throws well for them, so it was important to stick to what we’ve done all year – put bat on ball and see what happens,” Garza said.

Garza made the one-run lead hold up, scattering five hits in his third complete game of the season. He fanned eight, and didn’t walk a batter.

He too boasts a miniscule earned-run average, lowering it to 0.51 in conference play, while striking out 81 and walking just four this season.

Ellensburg coach Todd Gibson, who is in his 20thseason at Ellensburg, said it’s been awhile since he’s seen a team with as stellar of a pair of starting pitchers.

“Probably our teams in the ’17, ’18 and ’19 was the last time,” he said. “Selah usually has one, and there are others, but two like that is unusual.”

The Bulldogs won Class 2A state championships in 2017 and 2018 with pitchers such as Jadon Bugni, Xander Orejudos and Spencer Davis leading the way.

With the sweep, Othello moves close to the CWAC championship. The Huskies last won outright in 2003, when Garza was a player and they went on to win the Class 2A championship.

Othello (12-1 CWAC, 15-3) overall hosts Selah on Tuesday before travelling to Toppenish next Saturday for a doubleheader to cap the regular season.

The Huskies’ lone misstep a – 3-2 loss to Quincy – served as a reminder of how fickle baseball can be.

“I think that’s exactly what it was for the kids,” Garza said. “The kids got together and said, ‘we got to start to lock in.’”

Ellensburg (10-3, 10-7) faces another test Tuesday when they host East Valley a week after outslugging the Red Devils 19-11.