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About East Oregonian : E.O. (Pendleton, OR) 1888-current | View Entire Issue (May 25, 2017)
SPORTS THURSDAY, MAY 25, 2017 PENDLETON Prep Playoff Roundup Pioneers, Rockets advance 1B FOLLOW US ON TWITTER @EOSPORTS Richards saves Buckaroos Pendle- ton pitch- er Lauren Richards gets ready to fist bump her coach after striking out three batters in a row with bas- es loaded Wednes- day against Corvallis at Steve Cary Field. Mac-Hi rallies past Newport; Pilot Rock rolls Regis East Oregonian MILTON-FREEWATER — A two-out rally in the fourth inning gave the Mac-Hi Pioneers the momentum they needed to finish off the Newport Cubs in the first round of the OSAA Class 4A softball state playoffs on Wednesday at Yantis Park. Mac-Hi put five across in the fourth, then six more in the fifth to win 11-1 via mercy rule. Mallory Copeland returned from illness to lead the Pioneers at the plate going 2 for 3 with two RBI. Ashlyn Marly added three RBI and scored twice, and Brooke Smiley also went 2 for 3 with one RBI. McKenna Stallings pitched the complete game and allowed just three hits while striking out seven and walking none. Newport’s only run came on a solo home run by pitcher Skyler Szabo in the top of the fifth. She also pitched the whole game and finished with five strikeouts and six walks. UP NEXT No. 3 Mac-Hi hosts No. 6 Crook County on Friday. First pitch is scheduled for 4 p.m. at Yanit Park. ——— (5 innings) R H E NHS 000 10 — 1 3 2 M-H 000 56 — 11 10 0 W — M. Stallings. L — S. Szabo. 2B — S. Delak, H. Schones (NHS); M. Fortune, R. Lyon, B. Smiley (M-H). 3B — A. Marly (M-H). HR — S. Szabo. PILOT ROCK 10, REGIS 0 — At Pilot Rock, Tehya Ostrom was one walk away from a perfect game but settled for a no-hitter as her No. 2 seed Rockets shutout No. 15 Regis 10-0 in a Class 2A/1A first round playoff game on Wednesday. Pilot Rock coach Darin Fitz- patrick said that Ostrom mixed her pitches and hit her spots constantly in the game, helping her strike out eight batters in five innings of work. Bekah Roe had a fantastic game at the plate for the Rockets, as she went 2 for 3 with a pair of doubles, four RBI and two runs scored. She ended the game in the fifth with a bases-loaded double that scored all three to give her team a walk-off to See PREPS/2B Staff photo by Kathy Aney Pendleton survives scare from Corvallis, advances to quarterfinals Pendleton’s Rylee Gentner prepares to dash to third base as Corvallis infielder Mad- die Garretson throws to first base Wednesday at Steve Cary Field. 5A First round By ERIC SINGER East Oregonian Lauren Richards’ reputation as one of the top softball pitchers in the state was further solidified on Wednesday afternoon. The Pendleton junior struck out 14 Corvallis batters and allowed just two hits and three walks as Pendleton defeated the Spartans 4-0 in their first round playoff game at Steve Cary Field. However, it was Richards’ masterful work in the sixth inning that was so impressive. With the Buckaroos leading 1-0, Corvallis smacked a leadoff single, worked a walk and then loaded the bases with no outs after a fielding error by the Buckaroos. After a short visit to the circle by Pendleton coach Tim Cary, Richards re-focused and promptly struck out three straight batters to leave the bases loaded. #14 Corvallis #3 Pendleton 0 4 “That was pretty impressive,” Cary said of Richards. “It’s the meat of their order there where we’re thinking ‘gosh it’ll be tough to keep at least one off the board’ and it was amazing to see her just mow down the middle of the order. “That was absolutely huge for us, and it probably took the win out of (Corvallis’) sails a little bit.” Pendleton rode the momentum from the top of the inning into the bottom, and was finally able to break through against Corvallis’ pitcher Kelsie Sullivan, who had allowed just two hits and one hit-by-pitch through the first five innings. Staff photo by Kathy Aney Richards started off the run with a single up the middle and then RBI hits from Payton Hergert, Kalan McGlothan and Alexi Brehaut gave the Buckaroos a 4-0 lead. “(Sullivan’s) speed was one we really haven’t seen before so it jammed us up a bit at first,” Hergert said of the team’s offen- sive struggles. “But we found a way to get the bat to the ball. We had some momentum from the inning before and really took that to the plate ... we were all really jacked up going up there so we used it.” Pendleton’s only other run came in the first inning. Kirah McGlotahn led off with a looping single into left field, stole second base and then advanced to third on a passed ball. Hergert then drove her in with a grounder to the shortstop for a 1-0 lead. See BUCKAROOS/2B MLB STANFIELD Tigers start title defense with dominance Mariners slide continues Stanfield breezes by Catlin Gabel in first round Seattle’s scored just five runs in five game losing streak By MATT ENTRUP East Oregonian The Stanfield Tigers brought a renewed energy, but the same steady sense of purpose to face Catlin Gabel in the opening round of the OSAA Class 3A baseball state playoffs on Wednesday at Madigan Field. With a jovial dugout atmo- sphere, the 2016 3A First Round state champions opened their title defense with a performance Catlin Gabel worthy of celebra- tion as they sent the Eagles into the offseason with a 23-3 beating. “Now that Stanfield playoffs started, most of us are really into it,” said Stanfield senior Dylan Grogan, who started on the mound and threw three shutout innings to get the win. “During the season, it just wasn’t as exciting for us. When the playoffs hit everyone gets pumped up and I think that made the biggest difference.” “Usually we try to think that each team we play in the playoffs is the best team in the state,” said 3 23 By IAN QUILLEN Associated Press to work on Maynard, and Thyler Monkus drew a walk to lead off and then stole second. Maynard’s control was an issue throughout his three innings on the mound, and he walked six, hit one and put four wild pitches past his catcher. But he still put plenty of balls in the strike zone for the Tigers to hit, and Grogan was the first of many to find open real estate with his line drive to center field that scored Monkus. Grogan later scored on a wild pitch to make it 2-0 after one inning. Woods made a pair of nice grabs WASHINGTON — After hitting three home runs and driving in eight runs in two games following a day off, Anthony Rendon has a message for Washington Nationals manager Seattle Dusty Baker: Keep ‘em coming. A refreshed R e n d o n Washington c o n t i n u e d d o i n g d a m a g e Wednesday night, belting a three-run first-inning homer, his eighth of the season, in the Nationals’ 5-1 victory over the Seattle Mariners. “It may not seem like it wears on you as a player,” said Rendon, who was out of the lineup for Washington in Atlanta on Sunday. “But that See TIGERS/2B See MARINERS/2B Staff photo by E.J. Harris Stanfield’s Brody Woods and Klay Jenson relax and have a little fun in the dugout during the Tigers’ 23-3 win against Catlin Ga- ble on Wednesday in Stanfield. junior third baseman Brody Woods. “That way we come out ready for each and every game.” It was a rematch from the 2016 quarterfinals, a game Stanfield won 17-1, but for three Tigers it was also their first playoff start. Junior second baseman T.J. Smith’s worst fears were realized when he bobbled a grounder hit by Catlin Gabel’s Jasper Gordon to immediately give the Eagles a runner on base. “It was one of those ones where I was expecting it, I just wasn’t ready for it,” said Smith, who had been called into action late in the season due to an injury and earned the start based on his defense. But Smith redeemed himself right away when the next crack of the bat sent the ball bouncing back his way and started a double play that shortstop Tony Flores finished. Then Eagles starting pitcher Matt Maynard got Catlin Gabel’s first hit with a single lined to right field, but Grogan got him leaning a little too far off first with his second pick-off attempt to end the inning. “It’s always really exciting when somebody gets picked off, when we make a good pick-off move or a nice play to end the inning,” said Smith, who was involved in two more double plays later in the game. “You come in and you just get really hyped up as a little group before you go hit, and then it just kind of carries on from there.” Stanfield’s offense got right Staff photo by E.J. Harris Stanfield’s Dylan Grogan throws from the mound in the Tigers’ 23-3 win against Catlin Gable on Wednesday in Stanfield. 1 5
