Pirates ride Reneau's arm to fifth straight win

Reliever turned starter pitches masterfully for Moses Lake

MOSES LAKE — For the second straight night, the Moses Lake Pirates didn't score many runs.

And, for the second straight night, they didn't have to.

Moses Lake rode the right arm of starting pitcher Dale Reneau — the team's closer last summer — to its fifth straight victory to open the season, a 2-0 win over the Olympia Athletics at Larson Field Tuesday night.

Reneau, who features a solid slider to complement his 89-mile-per-hour fastball, was virtually untouchable in his six innings of work. He gave up two singles and hit two batters, but allowed just one man past second base. He also struck out nine.

Not bad for a guy who had nothing but bullpen work this spring for Oral Roberts University in Oklahoma.

"Dale didn't start all year, so this is his first start in a long time," Pirates head coach Gabe Boruff said. "He's like, 'Hey coach, this is going to be weird for me' and I just told him to go out and pitch and that's exactly what he did."

For the second consecutive game, Moses Lake didn't muster much offense against the Athletics. Olympia starter Justin Marsh-Quinlan yielded four hits and an earned run, but left after five innings trailing 2-0.

The Pirates can thank leadoff hitter Zoey Angulo for chasing Marsh-Quinlan. Angulo, who just finished his freshman season at Rhode Island, led off the game with a sharp single to center field and scored on a wild pitch. He accounted for the Pirates' second run in the fifth inning, starting the frame with a walk, stealing second and scoring on Mike Capbarat's single to right.

"Zoey's not going to hit a ball a long ways, but man, he always finds the gaps and gets on base and has a great eye up there," Boruff said. "He's just a kid that fights off pitches and gets on base any way he can."

The Pirates have juggled Angulo and Cal State-Northridge product Billy Swanson in the leadoff spot early this season and Angulo seems to have a slight edge for the starting nod at the moment.

"I really feel like right now he's getting on base a little more than Swanson," Boruff added.

Moses Lake also got a perfect ninth inning out of Lee Roberts, who earned his second consecutive save with two groundouts and a strikeout.

"I think Lee, right now, is our No. 1 closer," Boruff said. "He's actually kind of grabbing hold of that role and running with it."

The Pirates' pitching staff has allowed just three runs in its five non-league games, a statistic that bodes well as they finish up with Olympia tonight and begin West Coast Collegiate Baseball League action Thursday against the Kitsap Blue Jackets.

After the way he threw Tuesday, Reneau could find himself throwing a lot more innings than he's used to.

"He spots his fastball very well and I thought tonight he surprised the whole coaching staff because we didn't know what to expect from a reliever," Boruff said. "He looked real comfortable and I think he's going to be a great starter for the rest of the season."

Cam Gill, who became the Pirates' final roster addition this week, makes the start tonight at 7:30 p.m. as Moses Lake goes for the sweep of Olympia. Gill pitched this spring for tiny College of Marin in Kentfield, Calif.

"We hear a lot of good things about him, so tomorrow will be our first look at him," Boruff said of Gill.