Middletown manages just four hits in North Central League I baseball loss at Fort Bragg
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FORT BRAGG >> The good news is the rain that fell throughout Lake County on Friday afternoon was pretty much a no-show on the Mendocino County coast as the Middletown Mustangs traveled to Fort Bragg for a North Central League I varsity baseball game.
The bad news is the Middletown Mustangs fell 7-0 to the Timberwolves, managing just four hits in the loss, winning pitcher Otilio Espinoza retiring 11 straight during one stretch. He struck out eight and walked one while throwing a complete-game shutout that required only 90 pitches.
While the remainder of Friday’s NCL I schedule was rained out, the Timberwolves and Mustangs were able to complete their home-and-away season series under mostly cloudy skies.
“It dumped rain in Middletown all morning,” Middletown head coach Marc Humphrey said. “Going from Willits to Fort Bragg on the 28 miles of winding road, half of that was road was getting pounded by heavy rain. We got to Fort Bragg and it was mostly cloudy with scattered sunshine. I’d have never believed that, but I saw it.”
Jon Hawkins led off the game with one of his two hits for the Mustangs and Hayden Xavier was hit by a pitch with two outs before John Finney struck out to end the inning. Middletown (3-3 league, 7-6 overall) didn’t have another baserunner until Blake Costlow walked with one out in the fifth.
The Mustangs had back-to-back one-out singles by Hawkins and Hunter Karp in the sixth but couldn’t break through. Madden Sutton had the final Middletown hit, a two-out single in the seventh.
Fort Bragg scored five times in the bottom of the second inning against losing pitcher Cody Perez and two more in the fifth before Perez gave way to reliever Costlow. Perez allowed eight hits in his four-plus innings, striking out and walking three. Costlow finished with two scoreless innings of relief, allowing one hit and one walk.
Dane Salo went 3-for-4 with a RBI for the Timberwolves (4-2, 9-6).
Perez and Costlow actually had success against the top part of Fort Bragg’s batting order, according to Humphrey, as the Nos. 1, 2 and 4 hitters for the Timberwolves were a collective 1-for-12.
Middletown is on the road Tuesday to play Clear Lake at 4 p.m. The same two teams tangle again Friday, April 17 in Middletown.