Arcata

BASEBALL ROUNDUP — Mixed fortunes for H-DN teams at Shasta 

File photo – Caden Vance

Two of the four H-DN teams in action at the Shasta tournament opened with a victory on Tuesday.

The Eureka Loggers rebounded from a disappointing Saturday in the Big 5 to beat Central Valley 7-3 in their tourney opener, while the Tigers came out swinging in an impressive 15-5 win over Etna in six innings.

The Del Norte Warriors also were in action in Redding and fell 6-4 to Red Bluff in their opener, while the McKinleyville Panthers dropped a close one to the host school, 3-2.

Caden Vance has been a consistent bright spot for the Loggers this season, despite their struggles in league play.

Vance was instrumental in Tuesday’s win, both on the hill and at the plate.

The talented Eureka senior pitched a complete-game four-hitter and struck out seven Etna batters, while also hitting a pivotal three-run home run in the bottom of the sixth inning, as the Loggers battled back from a late 3-1 deficit.

Rogan Bode, Ean Savage and Ty Crawford each also had a hit in a four-hit team performance.

Head coach Shannon Rodgers also praised Toa Ou for his performance.

“Toa Ou provided the toughness that gave us the spark that we needed,” Rodgers said of the junior left fielder. “His toughness didn’t show up in the stats but it did on the field.”

Michael Jewell and Garrett Levitt each drove in a run for the Loggers, who improved to 7-4.

The Loggers continue tournament play against Red Bluff on Wednesday at 12:30 p.m.

Arcata 15, Etna 5, 6 Innings

The Tigers stretched their winning streak to six straight with a comfortable victory over Etna on Tuesday.

And they did it with plenty of offense, with 10 different Arcata players hitting successfully, led by outstanding sophomore Anthony Ebert who was 3-for-4 with a home run, a triple and a double and came within a single of hitting for the cycle.

“They had some quality pitching and we took some hacks,” Arcata head coach Troy Ghisetti said. “I’m very happy with how we’re swinging the bats.”

For good measure, Ebert also got the win on the mound, holding the Etna bats to no earned runs on just two hits over four innings, while also striking out five.

Wilson Medina also had a big day at the plate, finishing 3-for-4 with a double, while Ben Lukens was 2-for-4 with a home run.

Will Mager added a double to round out six extra-base hits for the Tigers, who improved to 11-2, while Cedar Cline was 2-for-3 and Miles Oliver went 2-for-4.

Chase Coleman, Braden Meadows, Devon Shinn and Finn Warner rounded out a 17-hit team performance.

The Tigers will continue tournament play against Enterprise on Wednesday at 12:30 p.m.

Red Bluff 6, Del Norte 4

Errors continued to prove costly for the Warriors in their tournament opener.

Despite a solid day at the plate against the Red Bluff ace, the Warriors gave up all four runs in the top of the fourth, while committing three errors in the inning.

“We’re just having those problems with the crooked numbers and errors in one inning and it’s killing us,” head coach Brandon Coborn said. “But what I did like is that we were competitive against the Red Bluff ace.”

Willie Bommelyn got the start on the hill and also made his presence felt at the plate.

The senior hit a big two-RBI single in the sixth to keep his team in the game, while also throwing two solid innings for a no-decision.

Bommelyn allowed just two hits and three walks and struck out three.

Brody Mattz took the loss in relief, with Preston Daniels closing out the game with 2.2 solid innings and allowing just three hits while striking out three.

Mattz had a good game at the plate and was 2-for-4 with two runs, while Cole Blackburn was 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI and Saxon Taylor was 2-for-4.

Cooper Maxwell also made some noise at the plate and was 1-for-3 with a run.

The Warriors, who are now 6-6, will continue tournament play when they play Foothill at 10 a.m. on Wednesday.

Shasta 3, McKinleyville 2

The Panthers lost a close one to the host school despite a good performance by Branson Dobrec on the mound and some balanced hitting from throughout the lineup.

Dobrec allowed just four hits in a complete-game performance, as both teams matched up well.

“It was one of those games you wish you had back,” McKinleyville head coach Mike Dobrec said. “But it was a good game. We just came out a little flat to start.”

The Panthers gave up all three runs in the opening three innings and held the Wolves scoreless after that, while cutting into the deficit with two runs in the top of the fifth.

They had their chances to pull out the win after loading the bases with no outs in the fourth, but they were unable to take advantage.

They also had the potential tying run called out at the plate to end the fifth-inning rally.

Bryce Sargent had a big two-RBI hit in the fifth, with Jackson Kelly, Tenoch Tapia, Kolbey Stolpe, Riley Bates, Pat Wilson and Tyson Bragg each also getting a hit.

The Panthers, who are now 6-5, will continue tournament play against Central Valley at 3 p.m. on Wednesday. 

Leave a Reply