WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21, 2018
HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A9
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Bulldogs grind out victory
Hermiston
earns win
in season
opener
HERMISTON HERALD
STAFF PHOTO BY KATHY ANEY
Hermiston shortstop Sydney Stefani puts out Ridgeview’s Lorena Vasquez during last week’s game at Rocky Height Elementary School.
Hermiston comes back in the
fifth to retake control of the
game, holds on for the win
By ALEXIS MANSANAREZ
STAFF WRITER
H
ERMISTON — Last year, the most-
ly-freshman Hermiston softball squad
was nervous when they took the dia-
mond for the first time. The Bulldogs
were up against a tough senior cast in Rid-
geview and dropped the game 14-3.
This year, the now-seasoned Bulldogs’
team entered its season opener with new-
found confidence and were looking for
revenge against the defending Intermoun-
tain Conference champions.
“Last year we went in nervous and the
girls kind of took it personal this year like,
‘Wow that really happened,’ and this time
they came out ready to fight,” head coach
Kate Greenough said.
The 5-3 win over Ridgeview on March
13 was thanks in part to the defensive
efforts of Sydney Stefani and the pitching
of the Almaguer sisters, senior Julissa and
sophomore Janelle.
In the top of the sixth, Janelle Alma-
guer replaced Julissa Almaguer in the cir-
cle. Ridgeview scored all three of their runs
in the top of the previous inning to take a
3-2 advantage, but Hermiston’s offense
brought in a pair of its own to retake the
lead for good.
Julissa Almaguer hit an RBI double to
left-center field to bring home Amanda
Barron and when the next batter took the
plate, the starting pitcher advanced to third
on a wild pitch.
Kylie Green hit a sacrifice fly that
allowed Julissa Almaguer to score and put
the Bulldogs (1-0 overall) up 4-3.
In the middle of that tough fifth inning
when the Ravens (0-1) made their come-
back, Greenough had a simple yet inspir-
ing message.
“Well, I just told the kids that you can’t
get comfortable and you have to play for
each other,” she said. “As soon as you make
it a personal testimony for one of your
teammates they really rise to the occasion,
and I think that was kind of that message
where they realized they need to fight for
each other and they could.”
And now, it was Janelle Almaguer’s turn
to fight.
“I was really nervous but then everyone
was pumping me up like, ‘You can do this,
you can do this,’” she said. “So, then I was
really excited to go in.”
In the final two innings, the righty’s
nerves were almost undetectable. Janelle
Almaguer allowed only three base hits and
struck out two batters to close out the game.
It’s the kind of work Greenough wants to
see their first time around.
“It’s great to come out and get the win,”
she said. “The girls worked hard all seven
innings. In this first game that’s kind of what
you’re looking for, who is going to push,
who is going to fight. We definitely had our
share of mishaps but the kids rebounded
well and just kept fighting throughout the
whole thing.”
Hermiston opened the game with two
quick runs in the first inning.
Stefani hit a line drive to center field that
brought in Julissa Almaguer for her first trip
around the bases and catcher Bailee Noland
sent a pop up to the same spot that allowed
Stefani to tag home.
For the insurance run in the sixth,
Janelle Almaguer reached base on a field-
er’s choice but as the Ravens’ offense was
trying to stop another Bulldog from scor-
ing, Almaguer reached third and eventually
home on a wild pitch.
Hermiston will play again Friday at St.
Helens. The first pitch is scheduled for 4
p.m.
———
R H E
RHS 000 020 0 — 2 10
1
HHS 200 021 0 — 5 7
3
RIDGEVIEW — N. Hill, A. Frost (5) — Lorena Vasquez
HERMISTON — Ju. Almaguer, Ja. Almague (5) — Bailee Noland
HERMISTON — After get-
ting rained out last Tuesday,
the Hermiston baseball team
was finally able to play its sea-
son-opener Saturday afternoon
when it hosted La Salle Prep.
And it was worth the wait as
Hermiston won 6-5 at Armand
Larive Middle School.
After the Falcons took a
3-0 lead in the top of the third,
the Bulldogs (1-0) quickly
answered in the bottom half
of the inning with two runs as
Lukas Tolan scored from third
on a balk and then Landon
Jones’ double to left brought
home Wyatt Noland to make it
3-2.
Then trailing 4-2 in the sixth,
a double by Joey Gutierrez and
a single by Jordan Ramirez set
the Bulldogs up for some runs.
Gutierrez scored from third on
an error and then Joel Mendez’s
single brought home Ramirez to
tie the game at 4-4.
Three batters later, Caden
Schwirse hit a two-run single to
left field to put the Bulldogs up
6-4.
In the seventh, La Salle
Prep scored one run on a bas-
es-loaded walk from Ramirez
and had the bases loaded
with two outs before Ramirez
worked a three-pitch strikeout
to end the game.
Ramirez got the win on the
mound with two innings of
relief, and also had a standout
day at the plate going 3-for-3
with a run scored. Tolan started
on the mound and struck out six
over five innings while giving
up five hits, three runs and three
walks.
Hermiston’s next game will
be Friday, when the Bulldogs
host Lakeridge at 3 p.m.
————
R H E
LSP
003 001
1 — 5 6 2
HHS
002 004 X — 6 9 4
(L) M. Evans, J. Owens (4) and J. Jenson. (H)
L. Tolan, J. Ramirez (6) and W. Noland. W — J.
Ramirez, L — M. Evans.
2B — M. Evans, N. Grogan 2 (LSP); L. Jones,
J. Gutierrez (HHS).
Tigers handed two losses,
each in a different fashion
PASCO — The Stanfield
Tigers played their first dou-
bleheader of the season Satur-
day and dropped both games to
Tri-Cities Prep by scores of 4-3
and 15-10.
Game 1 was a pitchers duel
as Stanfield (1-2) ace Brody
Woods and TCP ace Logan
Mercado were both lights out on
the mound and kept the offenses
quiet. Woods threw 81 pitches
in four innings, allowing only a
See BASEBALL, A10
SCHEDULE
Riverside opens season with big win
HERMISTON HERALD
BOARDMAN — Last Tuesday, the River-
side softball team brought the bats out in its sea-
son opener by piling up a whopping 29 runs to
defeat Stevenson (WA).
Skylar Wightman had a big day with 12
strikeouts pitching, while going 2-for-2 at the
plate with six RBI. Megan Hegar went 4-for-4
batting with five RBI, while Abby Hernandez
and Lily Rockwell each scored four runs apiece.
The Pirates (1-0) returned to play Tuesday
on the road in Washington. Results of the game
were not available at press time.
————
R H
SHS
000 10 —
1 1 1
RHS
997 4X — 29 11 1
W — S. Wightman, L — Pennie S.
E
After dropping season opener, Heppner
answers with two wins
HEPPNER — In the season opener for both
teams, the Mac-Hi Pioneers slugged 14 hits
for 13 runs to defeat the Heppner Mustangs on
March 13.
Rachael Lyon led the Pioneers with three hits
from the leadoff spot while adding four RBI.
Graci Bullock and Ashlyn Marly each smacked
home runs for the Pioneers, too.
In the pitching circle, Sydney Earls and
McKenna Stallings combined for 14 strikeouts
and only three hits allowed in seven innings.
For the Mustangs, all of their offense came
off the bat of Maggie Flynn, who went 3-for-3
with two doubles and a home run.
At home again Friday, the Mustangs gutted
out two big wins over the Enterprise Outlaws
with scores of 8-5 and 6-3 in a doubleheader.
Dakota Durfey pitched two complete games
for the Mustangs (2-1), digging deep to battle a
tough Enterprise lineup and a steady rain that
fell for most of the second game. In Game 2,
she gave up a three-run home run to Lexi Gas-
sett in the first inning, but shut out the Outlaws
for the rest of the game.
Maggie Flynn, Morgan Orem and Kacie
Gray each picked up doubles for the Mustangs’
offense, and freshman Eva Martin had a clutch
two-RBI single in the fourth inning of Game
2 that gave Heppner a 4-3 lead it wouldn’t
relinquish.
Umatilla struggles early on the road
In Umatilla’s first games of the season March
13, the Vikings spent it on the road and dropped
both games of their doubleheader in Washing-
ton. The first was a 33-4 defeat and the second,
a 15-5 loss.
Three days later, Umatilla fell again in a
doubleheader to open the first week of the sea-
son 0-4.
The Vikings continued play on the road
and faced Portland Christian, which won both
games 15-5 and 12-8.
Charlene Alvarez led the Vikings (0-3) with
two hits and Lauryn Journot added a double.
Paige Pickard and Journot each pitched for the
Vikings.
The two teams were supposed to play a
doubleheader, however the second game was
called in the fourth inning due to darkness. The
Vikings trailed 12-9 at the time, scoring six runs
in the fourth inning.
“It was good to see the kids battle back,”
Umatilla coach Kylie Lete said.
They’ll have a little over two weeks off
before their next matchup, a game at Echo on
April 5.
Irrigon grinds out a win that’s sand-
wiched between two losses
The Irrigon Knights were scheduled for a
doubleheader March 13 against the Pendleton
freshman softball team. But inclement weather
cut the day short, and both teams only played
one game. The Bucks ran away with a 13-3 win
to hand the Knights their first loss of the season.
Back at home Saturday, Irrigon split a dou-
bleheader with the Pilot Rock Rockets. Irrigon
won the opener 6-4 and then the Rockets (1-1)
thumped the Knights (1-2) 14-4 in Game 2.
Irrigon will next host Heppner for a double-
header Thursday starting at 2 p.m.
Local slate
PREP BASEBALL
Wednesday
Stanfield at White Salmon (WA), 4 p.m.
Friday
Umatilla vs. Bonanza (at John Day), 12 p.m.
Union at Heppner (DH), 1 p.m.
Lakeridge at Hermiston, 3 p.m.
Irrigon at Tri Cities Prep (WA), 3 p.m.
Riverside at White Salmon (WA), 4 p.m.
Saturday
Stanfield at Weston-McEwen (DH), 11 a.m.
Umatilla vs. Lost River (at John Day), 11 a.m.
Kennewick (WA) at Hermiston, 4 p.m.
PREP SOFTBALL
Wednesday
Hermiston at Bend, 4 p.m.
Thursday
Heppner at Irrigon (DH), 2 p.m.
Friday
Tri Cities Prep (WA) at Irrigon, 3 p.m.
Pasco (WA) at Hermiston, 4 p.m.
Riverside at Stevenson (WA), 4 p.m.
PREP TRACK AND FIELD
Thursday
Pendleton, Hermiston, Mac-Hi, Umatilla, River-
side, Heppner, Weston-McEwen, Stanfield, Helix
at Buck Track Classic (Pendleton), 11 a.m.
PREP TENNIS
Tuesday
Stanfield at Weston-McEwen, 3:30 p.m.
Riverside at Mac-Hi, 4 p.m..
Friday
Pasco (WA) at Hermiston, 3:30 p.m.
Helix at Riverside, 3:30 p.m.
Umatilla at Stanfield, 3:30 p.m.
Saturday
Hermiston (boys) at Kamiakin (WA), 12 p.m.
Kamiakin (WA) at Hermiston (girls), 12 p.m.
PREP GOLF
Tuesday
Pendleton, Hermiston, Heppner (girls) at The
Dalles Country Club, 10 a.m.
Mac-Hi at Wine Valley, 2:30 p.m..
Thursday
Pendleton, Hermiston at Big River Golf Course
(Umatilla), 10 a.m.
Mac-Hi at Vets Memorial, 2:30 p.m.
PREP LACROSSE
Wednesday
Hermiston at Chiawana (WA), 7 p.m.
Saturday
Hermiston at Wenatchee (WA), 1 p.m.