
Submitted photo
Opposing teams are having a hard time keeping Tyler Hinrichs off base.
The St. Bernard’s senior, who is hitting .534 this spring and has an on-base percentage of .634, reached base all five times he went to bat on Friday, as the Crusaders traveled to South Fork and won 12-4.
Hinrichs finished the game 3-for-3 with two walks and scored twice, as the Little 4 champs improved to 10-0 in conference and 19-1 overall.
Hinrichs wasn’t the only standout on in the win.
Junior Braylon Johnson provided the offensive highlight of the afternoon, finishing 3-for-4 with three RBIs and hitting his second home run of the season.
Luke Brunton (2-for-3 with two RBIs), Dakota Bestul (2-for-3) and Maccoy Rickson (2-for-5 with an RBI) each also had multiple base hits in the win.
A couple of young players impressed for the Cubs, who dropped to 3-7 in the Little 4 and 7-14 overall.
Freshman Ryan Tosten continued to showcase his talents with a solid start on the mound, holding a dangerous St. Bernard’s lineup scoreless for the opening two innings.
Tosten also finished 1-for-3 with an RBI, while standout sophomore Mason Bell continued his impressive spring by going 2-for-4 with a double and a run.
Matching up against the unbeaten conference champs, however, was never going to be easy for a young Cubs roster that features eight freshmen and sophomores combined.
For the second straight game, the Crusaders utilized some of their younger pitchers to give them some valuable experience, with three freshmen — Body Gaser, Jarren Biondini and Mason Long — making their first Little 4 appearances on the mound.
Gaser got the start and the win, throwing 2.1 innings and allowing just one run on one hit and one walk and striking out one.
Biodini threw two innings, giving up three runs on four hits and three walks and striking out one, while Long threw 1.2 scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one walk.
Senior Michael Manzi pitched one hitless inning to close out the game and struck out two.
Tyson Mulder (1-for-1 with an RBI and two walks), Sheyne Casey 1-for-3 with a walk and a run) and Kael Puno (1-for-4 with an RBI) each also had a base hit for South Fork, while the always dangerous Travis “T-Bone” Way found a way to get on base three times (on a walk, a hit-by-pitch and an error) and also had an RBI, two stolen bases and a run.
Shawn Schmidt also was walked and scored a run.
Casey, Cody Wheeler and Schmidt all pitched in relief.
According to the South Fork coaches, all four of the Cubs to see action on the mound pitched well, but the team defense struggled to make the plays behind them.
The Crusaders will play four games to close out the regular season next week, including a trip to University Prep on Monday, games against Hoopa on Tuesday (home) and Thursday (away) and a mouthwatering matchup at McKinleyville next Friday.
The Cubs will close out with a pair of games against Ferndale on Tuesday (away) and Thursday (home).

Categories: baseball, Ferndale, Hoopa Valley, South Fork, St. Bernard's


















