WALLA WALLA, Wash. — The Sweets closed out the 2024 season with one of their strongest wins of the year, beating the Ridgefield Raptors 11-2. The win gave the Sweets 21 on the year, which is a one game improvement from last year.

Walla Walla opened the scoring by bringing home two runs in each of the first two innings. In the first frame, it was mishaps from the Ridgefield battery that brought home the runs. A passed ball in the first inning and wild pitch in the second put the Sweets up 2-0.

In the second inning, Ryan Prescott, Brandon Faire, and Mason Millar combined for three straight doubles to start the frame. Faire and Millar’s doubles were both RBI knocks to put the Sweets up 4-0.

The final seven runs for the Sweets came in the fifth and sixth innings. Walla Walla sent nine hitters up to plate in each frame as they batted around the Raptors pitching. The big hit was in the fifth with Hayden Driggs slapping a double to left field with the bases loaded to bring home three runs and put the Sweets up 7-1. Driggs was brought in himself of another RBI base hit from Faire.

In the sixth, Driggs and Faire got RBI hits again, each bringing home a run to make the score 10-2. The final run for the Sweets was brought in with an RBI walk drawn by Millar.

As good as the Sweets were at the plate, things might have been better on the mound.

Zach Hangas bookended the season, starting tonight’s season finale after opening the season down in Bend, Oregon, back in May. Hangas, who entered the game just four outs away from setting the franchise record for the most career innings pitched, broke the record by fielding his position and getting an assist on a groundball back to the mound.

If that wasn’t good enough, Hangas had a no-hitter going through the first four innings, with the only blemishes being three walks scattered about.

Hangas finished the game with five innings tossed, one run allowed off two hits, three walks and five strikeouts. He ends his Walla Walla career with 120.2 innings, four more than Ryan Richardson who set the record back in the second season of the Sweets back in 2011.

To add on more accolades, Hangas was named the winning pitcher, tying him for the most career wins as a Walla Walla Sweet at eight victories.

The records didn’t stop there. First out of the bullpen was Josh Aribal who tossed in the sixth and seventh innings. In his two frames of work, Aribal got three strikeouts, which was all he needed to tie for the lead in the West Coast League. He matches Portland’s Freddy Rodriguez at 54 punchouts in the regular season.

Otho Savage was the last arm to toe the bump for the Sweets in 2024 threw two scoreless frames in the eighth and ninth innings. Savage fielded a groundball that was hit to first for the final out of the season.

With the win, the Sweets end the season 21-33 overall and 12-16 in the second half. Walla Walla finished the season off by winning four of their last five series and going 10-5 in that stretch. That was third best winning percentage in the final 15 games of the season in the South Division, just a couple of games behind Portland and Corvallis.

The Sweets return to action in 2025, which will be the 100^th season of baseball played at Borleske Stadium.