River Dogs win High Desert Baseball Classic
Rodney Harwood/Columbia Basin HeraldRiver Dogs designated hitter Abel Gomez of Othello hits a single to right field to drive in two runs during the High Desert Baseball Classic on Friday.
Rodney Harwood/Columbia Basin HeraldEthan Etter of Ephrata is geared up and ready to go in the River Dogs dugout during the High Desert Baseball Classic at Johnson-O'Brien Stadium.
Rodney Harwood/Ciolumbia Basin HeraldRiver Dogs runner Arcenio Martinez (15) slides safely under the tag of Lakeside Recover third baseman Trevor Dahl (11) during Friday's game at the High Desert Baseball Classic at Johnson-O'Brien Stadium in Ephrata.
River Dogs Blue 9, Lakeside Recovery 1
EPHRATA — The Columbia Basin 18U team recovered from five errors in the first three innings to beat Lakeside Recovery by the eight-run rule in six innings.
Dakota Fingar, Zac Berryman and Ethan Etter had two hits apiece for the River Dogs, who scored nine runs on nine hits, including a seven-run sixth inning to end the game.
“I was a little disappointed with our defense, but the errors didn’t hurt us,” River Dogs manager Randy Boruff said. “We hit the ball well again today.”
Duncan Favor went the distance, giving up just the one unearned run and scattering three hits. He pitched his way out of a bases-loaded-jam with one out in the top of the second. The River Dogs right-hander struck out the next two batters to keep it a scoreless tie. The Columbia Basin errors finally caught up to them in the third when a throwing error led to the first run of the game.
But Abel Gomez, who finished the game with three RBI, drove in a run in the River Dogs half of the third and they scored two runs on two hits to take the lead.
“I’ve been coming back from a hamstring pull, so this is just my seventh game back. But it feels pretty good. Winning our tournament is always the objective,” Fingar said. “I’m seeing the ball well. He wasn’t throwing too hard today, so it was just about getting your timing down. We have a lot of experienced guys and we’re starting to swing it pretty well.” The River Dogs broke it open in the bottom of the sixth with seven runs. Etter doubled and Gomez drove in a couple of runs with a single to right field.
“We’re hitting the ball better as a team and pitching is coming along too,” Etter said. “Duncan threw well today. He had pretty good command, we just had some hiccups with the defense. But we came through.”
Lakeside 001 000 - 1 3 1
River Dogs 002 007 - 9 9 5
Hits: Dakota Fingar 2-4, Zac Berryman 2-4, Ethan Etter 2-4 (2B), Abel Gomez (3 RBI)
River Dogs win tournament championship
EPHRATA — Columbia Basin punctuated its 11-game win streak with a victory in the championship game of the High Desert Baseball Classic.
In a rematch from earlier in the weekend, Kaeden Murphy tossed a two-hitter with seven strikeouts and the River Dogs beat the Blaze 4-1. Berryman and Fingar set the tone from the plate, going 3-for-3.
The River Dogs previously beat the Blaze 6-1 in pool play. Gomez pitched a complete game and Duncan Favor drove in three runs.
In the semifinals, Columbia Basin beat the Rockhounds 9-1. Quincy Vassar allowed one run on three hits. Jordan Rios, Gage Gibson, Fingar and Berryman ahd two hits each.
Columbia Basin hosts Walla Walla, 4 p.m., Tuesday.