Photos by Gina Muhs -Yoshi Hatch in action for the Cubs this season.

The South Fork bats are coming alive at an opportune time, as the Cubs get set for their conference openers next week.

On Monday, they swept a doubleheader against Hayfork in Miranda and in their last three games the South Fork boys have scored 28 runs.

They won game one against Hayfork 11-3 and followed that with a 9-2 victory in game two.

And they had to battle for both wins after digging themselves a hole in each game.

“We got down early in both games, but we battled back to take the lead,” first-year head coach Alex Finn said. “I’m super proud of the way the guys played for seven innings. We’re getting better and a lot of the younger players are stepping up.”

That includes impressive freshman Mason Bell, who is playing a key role for the team early in the season. 

The newcomer pitched 6.1 innings for the win in game one and also hit successfully in both games.

After going 1-for-4 with a stolen base and a run in the opener, Bell was 2-for-4 with a double and scored twice in game two.

“Mason Bell had an awesome performance in game one,” Finn said. “He kept us in the game.”

Travis Way pitched a complete game for the win in game two and he got plenty of offensive support from the Cubs bats, which racked up 16 base hits.

John Stafslien led the way at the plate in that win and finished 3-for-4 with a double and two stolen bases, while Sheyne Casey was 3-for-4 with a double and Sean Hartzell (2-for-3, stolen base, run), Bodhi Howes (2-for-3, two stolen bases) and Shawn Schmidt (2-for-3, run) each also had multiple hits.

Kael Puno and Brian Rodriguez each also had a base hit in the win.

“We’re scoring runs and we’re putting the ball in play,” said Finn, whose team also scored eight runs in a one-run loss to Willits on Saturday. “As long as we throw strikes the wheels are turning in the right direction.”

Photos by Gina Muhs

The South Fork bats also had 13 base hits in game one of Monday’s doubleheader.

Howes led the way and finished 3-for-4 with a pair of stolen bases, giving him five hits and four stolen bases on the day.

Hartzell (2-for-3, double, walk, two runs), Kuno (2-for-3, stolen base), Schmidt (2-for-4, double) and Casey (2-for-5, run) each also had multiple hits in game one.

Stafslien also had a base hit and scored twice while Cody Wheeler reached base three times on a walk and a pair of hit-by-pitches and scored all three times.

Way also scored twice after reaching base on a walk and a hit-by-pitch.

Wheeler pitched the final 0.2 innings in relief to seal the victory.

Base stealing has been a strength for the team early in the season, with 18 successful steals in Saturday’s loss to Willits, including four by Howes alone.

Bell also was 2-for-6 in that game.

The Cubs are now 4-3 on the season.

Photos by Gina Muhs