Mercer Island went in front early and pulled away with eight runs in the middle innings to beat Juanita 12-3 in the 3A KingCo loser-out contest Wednesday at Bannerwood Park.

The Islanders (19-4) led 4-0 after two innings when the Rebels (8-15) staged a three-run rally in the top half of the third to make it a one-run game. Mercer Island came back with three more runs in the bottom of the fourth and scored five more in the bottom of the fifth to put the game out of reach.

Michael Petrie went 3-for-5 at the plate with 2 RBI. Harrison Goonewardene and Noah Hsue both had two hits, with Goonewardene also driving in three runs.

From the mound, Lucas Chapman earned the win, allowing three runs (one earned) off four hits while striking out four in six innings of work.

Mercer Island will play the loser of Thursday’s 3A Metro tournament matchup between Roosevelt (19-4) and Lakeside (18-4) at 10 a.m. Saturday morning at Steve Cox Memorial Park in Seattle.