Summer Baseball: Renegades Exact Revenge on Centralia

Chehalis was able to get the best of Titus-Will here at Wheeler Field on Monday by a score of 13-0 in league play. The win served as a rematch from the championship game at the Brian Cox Memorial Tournament earlier this month when Centralia spoiled a storybook finish for the I-5 Jeep Renegade squad.

Britt Lusk pitched a five-inning complete game for the Renegades before the 10-run mercy rule went into effect. He allowed just one hit with six strikeouts to earn the win.

Chehalis posted three runs in the first inning to give Lusk all the cushion he would need. The Renegades then added three more runs in the third inning, two in the fourth inning, and five more in the fifth frame to push the game into mercy rule territory.

Laythan Demarest led the Renegades offense with two hits, two runs, a walk, and three runs scored. Logan Moore added a hit, two RBI, and two runs while Austin Johnson logged a hit and a pair of RBI. Cade Haller and Drayson Hilkemeier each added a pair of hits for Chehalis.

Noah Aliff absorbed the loss on the mound for Centralia. He was also the only player from Titus-Will to register a hit on the day.

The Chehalis I-5 Jeep Renegades take on Montesano on Monday in a doubleheader starting at 5 p.m. in Montesano. Centralia Titus-Will travels to Timberline on Thursday for a 6 p.m. single game.

Tuesday’s Results

Dirtbags Sputter to Start but Salvage a Split with Bandits

WINLOCK — The Dirtbags looked all washed up for most of the day here on Tuesday but managed to snap out of their lethargy just in time to earn a split in a non-league doubleheader with the Gorge Bandits.

William Gross nearly spun a no-hitter for the Bandits in Game 1 but had to settle for a one-hit shutout over six innings. Adam Goodwillie tossed a hitless and scoreless seventh inning for the Gorge to preserve the shutout victory.

Seth Butler slapped a double to left field in the fourth inning for the Dirtbags’ only hit of the game.

“I don’t know what the deal was in that first game. I know a bunch of our guys graduated over the weekend but we looked like a bunch of haggard mill workers just punching the clock and accumulating service time. That kind of effort will earn you a beatdown every time,” said Rural Baseball Inc. coach Jordan Nailon. “Their pitcher did a great job of carving us up with offspeed and took advantage of some tired eyes and poor approaches. We’ve just got to be better.”

In the second game, though, the Dirtbags were finally able to muster some gumption and escaped with an 8-6 win. Still, after going up 4-2 in the first inning that victory was ultimately dependent upon a four-run scoring spree in the bottom of the sixth inning.

Ben Woodrum got the rally going with a double and Cody Towns backed that up with a single. Kyle Hamilton then managed to get beaned in the head to load the bases before Tyler Nelson drove in a run with a fielder's choice. A pinch hit single by Tristen Lawrence brought in the game tying run. The Dirtbags wound up plating the go-ahead runs on an overthrow to first base.

Woodrum and Towns each had two hits to lead the Rural Baseball Inc. offense. Cam Bowen, Adolfo Salazar, AJ Volk, Matt Kurzeika, and Lawrence each added a hit to the Dirtbags’ tally.

Cole Bowers earned the win on the mound with two innings of relief work that included three strikeouts. Kurzeika notched the save by turning in a scoreless seventh inning.

“I was happy that we were finally able to wake up today but we’re going to have to figure out how to wake ourselves up before we get punched in the mouth,” noted Nailon. “Luckily, we’ve got hay hitting the ground this week so the boys can get out and learn a little bit about the difference between work and play.”

Rural Baseball Inc. will host their annual Orzel “Haymaker” Memorial Tournament beginning Friday in Winlock and Toledo.

Wranglers Get Wrapped Up in Their Own Ropes

HOCKINSON — The Wranglers couldn’t get out of their own way here on Tuesday as they fell 11-4 to Hockinson in a regularly scheduled nine inning affair.

The Hawks took a 3-0 lead in the first inning and kept adding on periodically throughout the game thanks to a barrage of errors by the junior squad from Rural Baseball Inc. The Wranglers committed eight errors in total on the day but managed to keep the game relatively close until the seventh inning when the heat and frustration combined to cause a defensive meltdown.

RBI scored one run in the second inning and another run the fourth and another in the top of the seventh to make the score 6-3. That’s when the Hawks exploded for five runs on just two hits to put the game well out of reach.

Jacob Douglass had two hits and a run in the game to lead the Wranglers. Jackson Boothe and Toby Tabor added one hit each while Isaiah Trudeau tallied a hit and a run.

Chase Staup was the only defensive standout for RBI. He pitched the first three innings of the game and allowed just one earned run before taking over catching duties the rest of the way.

The RBI Wranglers will host the annual Orzel “Haymaker” Memorial Tournament beginning Friday at Winlock and Toledo.

I-5 Toyota Rolls Past Black Hills

Eli Brown pitched a complete game for I-5 Toyota/Mountain Dew to help the team earn an 11-1 win in five innings in a senior legion baseball game at Wheeler Field in Centralia on Tuesday.

Brown allowed one run on five hits and two walks while striking out three batters. At the plate, Max Taylor was 4-for-4 with four RBI and Jared Winters scored three runs.

I-5 Toyota started off strong with three runs in the first inning and four runs in the second inning for a 7-1 lead. They kept the momentum going with one run in the third and three runs in the fourth to end the game early.

I-5 Toyota/Mountain Dew is back in action on Thursday, taking on Longview at R.A. Long in one seven inning league game.