ATHENA — In a matchup between two of the top 2A/1A teams in the state, Bre Ward struck out 10, and her defense turned a crucial double play, as No. 4 Weston-McEwen held on to beat Heppner 7-2 on Tuesday in the Blue Mountain Conference opener for both teams.
“We came together really well as a team and backed Bre up as a team,” Weston-McEwen coach Jeff Griggs. “We had some good quality at-bats with kids down in the order and we were able to roll the order. That was important.”
It was the first loss of the season for the No. 5 Mustangs.
“It was a tough loss,” Heppner coach Petra Payne said. “I was happy with our defense. The girls played well overall, just struggled at the plate against good pitching.”
After two scoreless innings, the Mustangs (5-1 overall, 0-1 BMC) were the first on the scoreboard, scoring one run in the top of the third as Isa Payne hit a two-out triple to center field that sent Avree Lathrop across the plate.
The TigerScots (5-1, 1-0) answered with three runs in the bottom of the third as Hope Berry, Ward and Reagan Pickard hit consecutive RBI singles for a 3-1 lead.
Heppner never backed down.
Trailing 3-1 heading into the top of the fifth, Avree Lathrop hit a triple to right field, and Delaney Stefani sent her home with a single to right field to cut the lead to 3-2. Stefani advanced to third on a throwing error on the play.
Isa Payne was hit by a pitch, and Cici Stefani drew a walk to load the bases with one out.
Sarah Estes hit a ball that caromed off Ward’s mitt to second baseman Megan McLouth, who had the force at second, then whipped the ball to first baseman Reagan Pickard for the double play to escape with their lead intact.
The TigerScots finished the scoring with four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, starting with Lily Langford hitting a two-run triple, and Pickard followed with a two-out single that put two more runs across the plate.
Langford went 2-for-4 with a double, a triple and two RBIs, while Pickard went 2-for-3 with three RBIs.
“Lily’s first hit was straight into a headwind,” Griggs said. “Any other day but today it’s gone, but their girl caught it at the warning track. Reagan did a nice job at the plate and had some nice plays at first base.”
Lathrop went 2-for-2 with a triple for the Mustangs, while Isa Payne had a triple and an RBI.
Ward allowed two runs on four hits and walked three in addition to her 10 strikeouts.
Heppner’s Maya Payne gave up seven runs on eight hits while striking out eight and walking six.
“It was a good duel,” Griggs said of the pitchers. “When we did get some of those walks, we got timely hitting behind them.”
Weston-McEwen will host Grant Union on Friday, while Heppner will play Friday at Nestucca.
PENDLETON 5, THE DALLES 4 — The Bucks scored four runs in the top of the seventh inning to escape with a road win over the third-ranked Riverhawks.
“I am pleased with the fact that we didn’t give up while we were down three runs in the seventh inning,” Pendleton coach Tim Cary said. “This was a much-needed win to help get us back on track.”
Trailing 4-1 going into the top of the seventh, the No. 6 Bucks (6-2), Avery Quaempts gave the Bucks a run with a sacrifice fly to left field. Katelyn Boatman followed, smashing a 2-0 pitch over the center field wall to tie the score at 4-4.
Tatum Lambert put the Bucks out front 5-4 with a fielder’s choice. The next two batters struck out, but the damage had been done.
The Riverhawks hit a pair of singles in the bottom of the seventh, but a groundout by Hailey Johnston ended the game with two runners stranded on base.
Shaylor Fisher earned the win for the Bucks, allowing four runs on nine hits while walking four.
“I thought Shaylor did a nice job tonight,” Cary said. “She was able to keep several batters off balance, and she was able to get several fly ball outs.”
Maryn Broker and Kelsi Primus each had two hits for Pendleton, while Boatman had two RBIs.
Siyra Faulker took the loss for The Dalles, giving up five runs on seven hits while striking out 11 and walking four.
PILOT ROCK 14, IRRIGON 0 (5) — Hailey Severe went 3-for-4 with a double, a triple and two RBIs as the top-ranked Rockets opened Blue Mountain Conference play with a road win over the Knights.
Pilot Rock (10-0 overall, 1-0 BMC) opened the game with six runs in the first inning, as Hailey Thieme hit a two-run double, and Autumn Severe hit an RBI double.
The Rockets added six more runs in the third, highlighted by two-run doubles by Hailey Severe and Thieme.
In the fifth, Audrey Umpleby and Stevee Osborn hit RBI singles as the Rockets finished the scoring.
Thieme went 2-for-3 with four RBIs, while Autumn Severe was 2-for-3 with two RBIs.
Jada Deist earned the win, allowing six hits while striking out six and walking four.
Avaree Pantoja took the loss for the Knights (2-9, 0-1), allowing 14 runs on 13 hits while striking out 10 and walking six.
Baseball
PENDLETON 14, THE DALLES 0 (5) — Grayson English drove in four runs, and Reid Furstenberg and Kolt McQuinn combined on a no-hitter as the Bucks beat the Riverhawks at Bob White Field.
“I thought we came out focused and aggressive from the start,” Pendleton coach Justin Speer said. “We put together quality at-bats up and down the lineup, and when you combine that with the way we threw the ball on the mound today, that’s the kind of performance we are looking for.”
Pendleton (6-6), which has won four in a row, scored four runs in the first to take control of the game. Vance Nelson and English hit back-to-back RBI singles, Eli Smidt had an RBI double, and McQuinn finished the scoring with a sacrifice fly.
In the second, the Bucks scored five runs, then added two in the third and three in the fourth.
In the second, Colin Harrington and Furstenberg hit back-to-back RBI doubles, and English topped things off with a two-run double. Nate Driskell hit an RBI triple in the third, and the Bucks scored all of their runs in the fourth with two outs.
English was 3-for-4 with a double for Pendleton, while Nelson was 3-for-3 with two RBIs.
“English had a big day at the plate and really set the tone for us offensively,” Speer said. “But what I was most proud of was our team approach. Guys competed up and down the lineup and played unselfish ball.”
Furstenberg struck out eight and walked none, while McQuinn struck out one and walked none.
The Riverhawks (6-4), who went three up, three down in the first three innings, and again in the fifth, had two men each base in the fourth on an error and a hit batter.
PILOT ROCK 10, STANFIELD/ECHO 3 — The Rockets scored seven runs in the third inning en route to a nonleague road win over the Tigers.
Holding a 1-0 lead after two innings, the Rockets (5-2) went to work in the third, starting with a two-run double by Gage Williams. Another run scored on a passed ball, one on an error, and Rhylan Hall added two runs with a single to center field. The final run scored on an error for an 8-0 lead.
The Tigers (0-4) countered with three runs in the bottom of the fourth, with runs scoring on an error, a wild pitch, and a ground out by Mateo Gutierrez.
Pilot Rock added two runs in the top of the seventh for good measure.
Stanfield’s pitching staff combined for 14 strikeouts and five walks, but defensively, the Tigers committed eight errors.
RIVERSIDE 20, WESTON-MCEWEN 12 — Roberto Lopez hit a grand slam and drove in five runs to lead the Pirates to a nonleague home win over the TigerScots.
Lopez hit his home run in Riverside’s seven-run fourth inning to break open a close game and give the Pirates (6-4) a 16-8 lead.
The high-scoring game had 20 hits, but the teams also combined for 12 errors and 13 walks.
Payton Thomas went 3-for-4 with three RBIs for the Pirates, while Lopez went 3-for-6, and Cougar Philippi hit a triple.
Tim Taylor led the TigerScots (0-5), going 3-for-3 with a double and two RBIs, while Kannan Weathers was 2-for-3 with an RBI and two stolen bases.
Boys tennis
PENDLETON 5, ONTARIO 1 — The Bucks swept the singles matches in a Special District 5 road win over the Tigers.
Sam Larsen won at No. 1 singles for Pendleton, beating Braden Guldes 6-3, 4-6, 10-7. Adam Harrison followed with an 801 win over Mathew Daniels, and Caden Crowder finished the singles with an 8-3 win over Trevor Lang.
In doubles, Ben Larsen and Cooper Crosby beat Lucian Montgomery and Santi Oveido 6-3, 6-3 in the No. 1 match. Jordan Hantke and Henry Pullen followed with a 6-3, 6-1 win at No. 2, while the Tigers won the No. 3 match as Lang and Montgomery beat Thor Case and Will Larsen 8-5.
Girls Tennis
PENDLETON 8, ONTARIO 0 — The Bucks gave up just five games in sweeping the singles matches in a Special District 5 road win over the Tigers.
McKinley Moore won the No. 1 match 6-0, 6-0, while Noemi Alvarez-Barroso won the No. 2 match 6-1, 6-1. In the No. 3 match, Olivia Allen won 8-1, and at No. 4, Kamryn Matteson posted an 8-2 victory.
Ontario did not provide names for their players.
In doubles, the Tigers gave the Bucks a run in the No. 1 match before Isabelle Bernier and Hannah Morioka pulled off a 6-3, 6-2 victory.
Avery Pinter and Avery Brown won 8-0 at No. 2, Madelyn Gunter and Jules Gunter won 8-1 at No. 3, and Miracle Edmiston and Emily Pattison closed out the match with an 8-1 win.
