Mavs split doubleheader to Eastmont

EAST WENATCHEE – After falling 2-1 in extra innings in the first game of a doubleheader on Friday to Eastmont, the Moses Lake Mavericks came out strong in the nightcap to ride out to a 5-3 win over the Wildcats.

“I think the biggest thing was we didn’t come prepared today,” Moses Lake Head Coach Donnie Lindgren said. “For whatever reason, there’s no excuse. We didn’t have the energy and effort that we’ve normally had. That was the most disappointing thing, we just weren’t ready to go.”

The Mavericks, who downed Eastmont 5-2 on Tuesday in Moses Lake, had trouble getting on base early in the first game. Their first hit came in the third inning off a single by senior Blaine Macdonald, and senior Michael Getzinger added a second hit to begin the fourth inning. The first run of the day came in the third inning off a groundout by senior Zane Harden that gave Moses Lake a 1-0 lead.

Eastmont tied the game in the bottom of the fifth inning, and the two squads remained tied at one after seven innings. Singles by Getzinger and sophomore Cruz Martinez got the two Mavs on base, and an Eastmont balk advanced the two runners to second and third base. However, Moses Lake was not able to take advantage of the runners in scoring position, and Eastmont walked off in the bottom of the ninth for a 2-1 win.

“We had a couple chances, we had guys on second and third and the meat of our order up,” Lindgren said. “We didn’t come through today, for whatever reason. That’s the best and worst thing about baseball, is you can hit it right at them and you’re out or you can get a full-swing bunt and you’re safe. It wasn’t lack of effort, we competed in everything else, but our energy level for some reason wasn’t there.”

Lindgren said that between games Macdonald and Getzinger, two of the team’s captains, talked with the team about bringing the energy in the second game. Something clearly worked, as the Mavs opened the first inning of the nightcap with three-straight hits by senior Braeden Anderson, Macdonald and Harden, later going up 2-0 after the top of the first.

“They told them we need to get ready to go the second game and bring our energy and our effort a little bit more,” Lindgren said. “I think it turned us around.”

“We just got the bats rolling and our energy was rolling,” senior Drew Greninger said.

As the rain began to fall in East Wenatchee, Greninger took the mound in the bottom of the first inning.

“The first inning was a little rough,” Greninger said. “It was downpouring, I was thinking it might not be my day. But after we got through that inning I got in a rhythm and felt good after that.”

The Wildcats tied the game at two after the first inning, but once Greninger found his groove, they only recorded two hits over the next three innings. Moses Lake added another two runs in the second inning on RBI by Anderson and Macdonald, and Martinez scored off an error in the fourth inning to give the Mavs five runs.

Eastmont added a run in the fifth inning but was unable to overtake the Mavs who went on to win 5-3.

“I was hoping it’d continue throughout the whole game, and credit (Eastmont), they kind of shut us down a couple innings,” Lindgren said. “That fast start got us going.”

Lindgren credited the Maverick pitching staff for limiting the Wildcats to five runs over the two games.

“We had a couple guys that really got us going,” Lindgren said. “Our pitching was phenomenal today. Michael (Getzinger) and Kaiden (Valdez), in the first game, threw great. Gave us two runs in nine innings. We have to be able to score runs. Then Drew did a great job throwing strikes.”

The head coach also gave nods to the underclassmen stepping up in Friday’s games, with sophomore Adrian Martinez and freshman Noah Hernandez making key plays throughout the doubleheader. Adrian Martinez got to third base off an Eastmont error in the nightcap, while Hernandez “did a great job” in right field for the Mavs.

“It’s good to get other guys picking us up,” Lindgren said.

Moses Lake, now 10-2, has a bye week this week before heading to Davis for a standalone game on April 18. First pitch is at 5 p.m.

“They’re a really good ball club,” Lindgren said. “They’ve got a pitcher who is one of the top pitchers in the league, so we’re going to really have to come ready.”

Ian Bivona may be reached at ibivona@columbiabasinherald.com.

Box Scores

Game 1

Mavericks 0-0-1-0-0-0-0-0-0: 1

Wildcats 0-0-0-0-1-0-0-0-1: 2

Game 2

Mavericks 2-2-0-1-0-0-0: 5

Wildcats 2-0-0-0-1-0-0: 3