File photo

The race for this year’s Big 5 championship in baseball took yet another twist on Wednesday.

Up in Crescent City, the Del Norte boys took care of business against Fortuna and won 15-3 to move back into sole possession of first place with just three games remaining.

They got some help from a surging Eureka team that has now won five of its last six games, including a 12-2 victory at McKinleyville on Wednesday to keep its chances of second place alive.

The Warriors (8-1) now lead the Panthers (7-2) by one win in the standings, as Del Norte looks to end an 11-year wait for a conference championship.

Eureka is 7-4 and in third place with one game remaining.

Del Norte and McKinleyville will play a big doubleheader in Crescent City on Saturday, where a sweep by the hosts would see them clinch the title outright and cap a big turnaround from a year ago when they finished last in the conference.

They then close out their conference campaign at Eureka next Wednesday, while the Panthers close out at Arcata on the same day.

“We’ve got to win two of three and we’re good,” Del Norte head coach Jeff Cook said. “The goal is to win out.”

The Panthers, meanwhile, trailed throughout their game against Eureka, which got away from them late when the Loggers scored six runs in the fourth and five more in the fifth on the way to ending the game early.

“We just didn’t make the plays behind our pitchers,” McKinleyville head coach Mike Dobrec said. “And Eureka had some timely hits.

“They played good. They hit the ball when they had to.”

File photo – The McKinleyville Panthers

Robert Williams led the Loggers at the plate and finished 2-for-3 with a home run, a double and two RBIs, while Jesse Vazquez also was 2-for-3.

Garrett Levitt added a triple in the win, while Ty Crawford had a double.

Royce Olson pitched four strong innings for the win on the mound, giving up just four hits and two walks and striking out five.

“Royce Olson kept us off balance,” Dobrec said. “He did well.”

Bryce Sargent, Kolbe Stolpe, Riles Egbert, Tate Saso, Jake Brunner and Joe Forbes each had one hit for McKinleyville.

Jackson Kelly took the loss on the mound, throwing four innings before Blake Santos came in for the final inning.

Up in Crescent City, meanwhile, the Warriors continued to roll and they have lost just once in their last 15 games.

“We had a good week off and some good practice this week, so it was nice to see it all come together today,” Cook said. 

The top four batters in the lineup — Aidan Rice, Saxon Taylor Anthony Cardenas and Landon Williams — all had two hits in the win, while Kanyon Starkey and Greyson Franklin each had one.

“We got everybody in today, and that was nice, especially after a week off,” Cook added.

Preston Daniels got the start on the mound and threw two innings, with Rice also throwing two innings and Wyatt Sharp closing out the game.

Tanner Franklin had two hits for the Huskies, who dropped to 0-10 in the Big 5, while E’Angelo Payne, Mariqus Ludd and Truman Elmore each had one.