Mustangs fall short at home against Credo
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WILLITS >> While the Clear Lake Cardinals didn’t have the same spring in their step that they had a day earlier in a 5-2 win over Napa, coach Brian Horne’s team still came away with a 10-4 non-league varsity baseball win over Willits on Friday afternoon in Willits.
“After our win over Napa, it was kind of a low-energy game for us,” Horne said.
Nevertheless, Clear Lake (5-2) built a 7-0 lead through four innings behind the pitching of starter Sawyer Smith, who worked four scoreless innings for the victory, allowing just one hit, striking out five and walking two.
Clear Lake’s only rough spot came in the top of the fifth when the Wolverines, taking advantage of walks and Cardinal miscues in the field, closed to 7-4.
“We got sloppy and didn’t play very well,” Horne said.
Clear Lake received contributions from up and down its lineup. Jesse Hayes went 3-for-5 with a RBI, stole two bases and scored twice while Zane McAuley went 2-for-5 with two RBIs and a stolen base. AJ Bruch (1-for-3), Peyton Portlock (1-for-1), Ryken Villanueva (1-for-4) and Jacob Horne (1-for-4) also drove in runs.
The Cardinals are off until Friday when they host St. Helena in the North Central League I opener for both teams. Horne said there is no reason his squad can’t contend for a championship.
“They can go as far as they want to go,” he said of his players.
In other non-league varsity baseball action Friday:
Upper Lake 10, Calistoga 4
At Upper Lake, Tyler Collins and George Rahmer combined on a seven-hitter while Landen Robinson went 3-for-4 with two RBIs as the Upper Lake Cougars beat the Calistoga Wildcats.
Collins worked four-plus inning and left the game with Upper Lake (3-2) leading 6-4. Rahmer pitched three solid innings of shutout relief, striking out three, to notch the save.
“Tyler didn’t have his best stuff today, but we persevered,” Upper Lake head coach Don Meri said. “George Rahmer did a fine job finishing up.”
After breaking a 4-4 tie with two runs in the bottom of the fourth, the Cougars added to their lead with three runs in the fifth and another in the sixth.
“The guys are doing what they need to do,” Meri said. “We’re being aggressive on the bases, not trying to run into outs, but just being aggressive.”
Mikel Compton went 2-for-3 with a double, RBI and three runs scored while Collins had a double and two RBIs. Jerod Rosales, Jimmy Sanchez and Mason Parker also had hits.
Upper Lake has one final tuneup before the start of North Central League I play late next week. The Cougars host Maxwell on Tuesday at 4 p.m.
Credo 11, Middletown 5
At Middletown, taking advantage of four Middletown errors and five walks issued by Mustangs pitching, Credo High School of Rohnert Park broke open a close game, scoring nine runs in the final three innings.
“You can’t make that many errors and leave that many players in scoring position and expect to win games,” Middletown head coach Kyle Buckhorn said.
Credo took a 2-0 lead in the top of the third inning before Middletown tied it with single runs in the third and fourth. After the Gryphon (3-3) pushed ahead with four runs in the top of the fourth, the Mustangs answered with two runs in the bottom half to make it 6-4. Credo’s three-run sixth and two-run seventh put the game out of reach.
Losing pitcher Cody Perez worked the first five innings, allowing three hits and six runs, only one of which was earned. He struck out eight and walked one.
“We started off really well, Cody Perez was dealing,” Buckhorn said. “Then the physical mistakes along with the mental ones added up. It didn’t help that Credo’s van broke down and they were half an hour late, so we just didn’t have that good energy at game time.”
Added Buckhorn, “I’m really proud of the way Cody Perez came out. He just lost his legs there at the end.”
Madden Sutton went 3-for-4 with a RBI for the Mustangs, Johnny Finney had two hits and a RBI, and Jon Hawkins went 1-for-1.
The Mustangs (1-2-1) are scheduled to play four games on the road next week, beginning with St. Helena (North Central League I opener) on Tuesday, Willits on Wednesday, Cloverdale on Friday (league), and Piner on Saturday.
