WALLA WALLA, Wash. (June 16, 2026) – The Sweets returned to Borleske Stadium and brought plenty of offense with them.

Walla Walla scored a season-high 15 runs, including nine in the seventh inning, to open its series against the Marion Berries with a 15-9 win Tuesday night. Royce Hale stole the show in his Sweets debut, finishing with seven RBIs, three hits and his first home run of the summer.

Marion scored once in the top of the first, but Walla Walla answered immediately.

Payton Knowles, Trevor Tse and Austin Owens all reached to start the bottom half before Gunner Geile brought home the tying run. Hale then stepped in for his first at-bat as a Sweet and lined a two-run single into right field, giving Walla Walla a 3-1 lead.

The Sweets added another run in the third when Tse came around to score, but Marion pulled within one during the fifth.

Hale gave Walla Walla some breathing room in the sixth. With Sam Kane aboard, the first baseman launched a two-run homer to push the lead to 6-3. It was Hale’s first home run as a Sweet and the second of his three extra-base hits on the night.

Then the Sweets broke the game open in the seventh.

Logan Nakamura, Knowles and Tse helped load the bases before Owens worked a walk to bring in the first run of the inning. Geile followed with an RBI single, and Hale cleared the bases with a three-run double to right field, stretching the lead into double digits.

Walla Walla kept going from there. Gaines Haussin added an RBI single, and after the lineup turned over, Tse drove home two more with a single to left. Owens capped the nine-run frame with an RBI double, giving the Sweets a 15-4 advantage.

Hale finished his debut 3-for-5 with a double, a home run, two runs scored and seven RBIs. The seven-RBI performance was part of a balanced night for a lineup that finished with 11 hits and received contributions throughout the order.

Knowles and Tse each went 2-for-3 and scored three times. Tse also drove in two, while Owens finished with two RBIs and two runs scored. Geile brought home two runs, and Kane added a hit, an RBI and a run.

On the mound, Perry Stow struck out six across four innings before Nico Bavaro took over for his Sweets debut. The young left-hander worked 3.2 innings and also recorded six strikeouts while throwing 88 pitches in his first appearance of the summer.

Joey Genduso recorded the final out of the eighth, and returning Sweet Isaac Hallam made his 2026 debut with a quick ninth inning. Hallam retired all three batters he faced, striking out two to close out the win.

As a staff, Walla Walla finished with 14 strikeouts, continuing the club’s strong early-season ability to miss bats.

The Sweets have now won eight of their last 11 games and opened their return to Borleske with their highest-scoring performance of the season.

Walla Walla continue the series against Marion on Wednesday, June 17. First pitch is set for 6:35 p.m. at Borleske Stadium.