Rangers start league play and take two of four against Centralia
| Final (12) | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 1 |
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0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 1 |
It was a weekend of away wins as Olympic takes 2 at Centralia, then drop 2 to the same opponent at home. With the split of four, both teams are now 2-2 to start league play. It took 12 innings to win the first for the travelling Rangers. OC was ahead 5-0 before losing their lead in the 6th and 7th innings. In the top of the 12th, Sophomore catcher David Matthew's sacrifice fly to center was enough to score freshman Andrew Ahn and put the Rangers up by a single run. Freshman hurler Nathan Burke secured the victory with an impressive 2 inning outing, striking out 4 of the 7 batters he faced. Starter freshman Itsuki Fukuda and freshman Evan Tordiffe worked the other 10 innings, striking out 8 batters between them. Ahn added 2 hits with a double and 2 RBI to anchor the Ranger's offense. Sophomore Tyler Harris, Freshmen Logan Putnam, and Alex Elton contributed multiple hits games in the tight affair. Game 2 was another tight clash with the first run of the game coming from Centralia in the bottom of the 5th. The Rangers answered quickly with a three-spot in the 6th, which was just enough to win the game 3-2. Sophomore hurler Nicho Crowley went the distance for the Rangers and struck out 13, nearly half of the Trailblazers he faced. Crowley leads all of NWAC in strikeouts with 69, 20 clear of second place. Freshman DH Logan Putnam's 6th inning triple brought in 3 and was all that Crowley needed to close out the game. Freshman Seamus Brown added two hits to the well-earned victory.
The Rangers played host on Day 2 and started Sunday well with a Sean Shaffer RBI single in the bottom of the first. Shaffer, a local product from Port Orchard and South Kitsap High, played first base for the Rangers and his single RBI was all the Rangers were able to get across in the first game. Centralia starter Liam Karlson went the distance, striking out 7 Rangers and allowing only one run. Shaffer and Harris each had 2 hits for the Rangers in a 1-5 losing effort. Game 2 was a low scoring battle with Olympic coming out on the short end of a 1-3 loss. Seamus Brown had 2 hits for the Rangers, including a double, and Tyler Harris had 2 steals, but the offense was spread out over the contest with the lone RBI coming off the bat of Freshman shortstop Yuji Imai who singled in the 4th, scoring Brown. Next up for the Rangers is a tussle with perennial league leaders, Lower Columbia, on Saturday, April 12 at home and Sunday, April 13 in Tri-Cities.
Saturday, Game 1: Rangers 6, Centralia 5. Offense: 6 runs [Imai (2), Shafer (2)], 10 hits [Harris (2), Ahn (2), Putman (2), Elton (2)], 5 RBI [Ahn (2)], 3 walks [Imai (2)], 3 steals [Harris, Imai, Matthew]. Defense: 12 IP [Fukuda (6), Tordiffe (4), Burke (2)], 5 earned runs [Fukuda (3), Tordiffe (2)], 10 hits allowed [Fukuda (6), Tordiffe (3), Burke (1)], 12 strikeouts [Fukuda (4), Tordiffe (4), Burke (4)], 1 error [Imai].
Saturday, Game 2: Rangers 3, Centralia 2. Offense: 3 runs [Castro, Harris, Imai], 7 hits [Brown (2)], 3 RBI [Putman], 1 walk [Shaffer]. Defense: 7 IP [Crowley], 2 earned runs, 3 hits allowed, 13 strikeouts, 1 error [Brown].
Sunday, Game 1: Rangers 1, Centralia 5. Offense: 1 run [Harris], 5 hits [Harris (2), Shaffer (2)], 1 RBI [Shaffer]. Defense: 9 IP [Stenerson (7), Nicholson (2)], 5 earned runs [Stenerson], 8 hits allowed [Stenerson], 6 strikeouts [Stenerson (5), Nicholson (1)], 1 error [Hecker].
Sunday, Game 2: Rangers 1, Centralia 3. Offense: 1 run [Brown], 7 hits [Brown (2)], 1 RBI [Imai], 5 walks [Harris (2)], 2 steals [Harris]. Defense: 7 IP [Spitzer (3), Corpuz (4)], 3 earned runs [Spitzer (2), Corpuz (1)], 6 hits allowed [Spitzer (2), Corpuz (4)], 5 strikeouts [Spitzer (3), Corpuz (2)].