The Walla Walla Sweets were unable  to overcome an early run from the Corvallis Knights Tuesday in a 6-3 defeat.

Travis Bazzana, the current WCL leader in batting average and hits, went 3-for-4 to lead the charge for the Knights. Bazzana, along with number two hitter Kyler Stancato, delivered a combined six hits at the top of the lineup to pace the Knights in the win.

Bazzana, who leads the WCL with a .425 batting average, put together a three-hit, three RBI effort with a double and two singles. Stancato added three hits of his own, going 3-for-4 on the game.

The KnightS attacked early in the bottom of the first. Bazzana and Stancato both reached on a single and a double to setup an RBI groundout by Tanner Smith.

Bazzana would drive in two more in the second on a double as part of a three-run inning. Tanner Smith would single in two runs in the seventh to make it a 6-2 game. The first three hitters in the Knights lineup accounted for all of the runs batted in in the game for Corvallis.

Mason Kokodynski ran into trouble early, but found his rhythm in the middle innings. The right-hander from LMU pitched five innings and allowed four earned runs and recorded three strikeouts.

The Sweets scored two in the seventh to cut into a 4-0 deficit. Two walks and a groundout led to a Paul Myro IV run scored on a wild pitch. An Eli Paton RBI single cut the deficit to two runs.

Despite the late comeback effort, the Sweets fell short and dropped to 14-23 overall. The Sweets are four games out of a playoff  spot in both the overall West Coast League and second half standings.

The Sweets will square off against the Corvallis Knights at 6:35 PST at Goss Stadium Wednesday in game two of a three-game series.

The Bend Elks squeezed out a 5-4 win over the Walla Walla Sweets Sunday evening.

After trailing 5-0 in the third, the Sweets put together two rallies in the late innings to cut the deficit to one. Despite this, the Elks were able to hang on and pick up their 14th victory of the season while taking the series two games to one.

The Elks broke things open with a big inning in the top of the third against Sweets starter Jacob Dahlstrom. Bend plated all five of their runs in the third on six hits and two errors from the Sweets. The Elks got the first two batters of the inning aboard on a Bryce Tweedt walk and a single from Bryce Boettcher.

After a groundout from Greg Fuchs, the Elks put their next seven hitters on base on five singles, a hit by pitch and a walk. Bend got their runs on a two-run single by Aidan Welch and three one-run singles by Chase Matheny, Omar Veloz and Gavin Logan.

The Sweets would score their first run on a bases-loaded error by the first baseman Fuchs. The Sweets forced the bases loaded on two walks and a hit by pitch before a groundball by Chris Conniff brought home Seth Ryberg.

Walla Walla pushed across two more in the seventh to cut the lead in half. After Ryberg reached on a one out walk, Conniff singled and advanced to second on a throw third. Parker Price delivered his seventh hit of the series on an RBI grounder off the third baseman Boettcher. Conniff would then score from third after a throw to second to catch Price stealing was unsuccessful.

The Sweets were mostly held in check through seven innings by Elks starter Kade Morris. Morris allowed three runs and struck out seven in seven innings, his longest start of the season.

The Sweets would score one more run in the bottom of the eighth on a Matthew Clark double off Elks reliever Cameron Smith. The Elks then turned the ball over to Gabe Smith, who inherited a second and third, nobody out situation and struck out three batters in a row. Smith would set down the Sweets in the ninth to earn a two-inning save.

The Sweets bullpen kept them in the game late. Travis Craven, Logan Hurd, Caden Kaelber and Eric Romo combined for 6 1/3 scoreless innings and struck out 10 batters. Kaelber highlighted the relievers, matching a season high six strikeouts in three innings.

The Sweets have the day off Monday before they begin a nine-game road trip Tuesday with a three-game series against the Corvallis Knights. First pitch is set for 6:35 PST.

The Walla Walla Sweets were held to just two hits Saturday in a loss to the Bend Elks.

Four Elks pitchers combined to blank the Sweets. Bend snapped a five-game losing streak with the win, while the Sweets fell to 14-21 with the loss and 5-6 in the second half.

The first four innings of the game were scoreless, as starters Nick Irwin and Dillon Holiday combined to allow just four hits through the first four frames.

In the fifth, the Elks struck first for three runs. Gavin Rork, Chase Matheny and Collin Montez all picked up RBI singles as part of a three-run, five-hit half inning for the Elks.

The game took a major turn in the top of the seventh. With one run already home for the Elks in the inning, Collin Montez ripped a 1-1 fastball down the right field line. After the ball was originally ruled foul, the umpires overturned the call and determined the hit to be a two-run home run.

From then on, the Elks would score five straight runs. Bend finished with 16 hits and had seven different players record multi-hit games. Matheny and Montez highlighted the offense for Bend, combining for four hits and six runs batted in.

The Elks delivered an equally impressive showing on the mound. Starter Dillon Holliday tossed six innings of shutout baseball and allowed just one hit. Charlie Adamson, Matt Dallas and Cole Wilkinson threw a combined three scoreless frames out of the bullpen while allowing just one base hit. Holliday earned his second win of the season, while Nick Irwin recorded the loss after allowing three earned runs in 4 2/3 innings.

Parker Price recorded both hits for the Sweets on the offensive side and now has six hits in the series. Defensively, the Sweets struggled, committing five errors.

The Sweets are back in action tomorrow for the rubber match of the three-game series. First pitch is set for 6:05 PST.

The Walla Walla Sweets earned their biggest comeback win of the 2021 season with a 9-7 win over the Bend Elks Friday.

After trailing 7-0 going into the bottom of the fourth, the Sweets scored nine unanswered runs to earn their 14th win of the season and improve to 5-5 in the second half.

The Bend Elks produced a six-run top of the second inning to take a big lead early on. Bend picked up six hits in the half inning and also took advantage of two Walla Walla errors to jump ahead early against Sweets starter Calvin Kirchoff. The inning was highlighted by a two-run triple by Chase Matheny, who now leads the Elks with 17 runs batted in.

After an RBI single by Gavin Logan made it 7-0 Elks in the top of the 4th, the Sweets got to work offensively. After a single by Colin Wetterau and back-to-back hit by pitches by Justin Folz and Eli Paton, Matthew Clark delivered the first grand slam of the summer for the Sweets on a homer over the left field scoreboard. Clark is now tied for the team lead with three home runs.

Folz helped cut into the deficit one inning later. The Sweets left fielder ripped a ball into right field to score Parker Price and make it a 7-5 Elks game. Folz knocked in his 11th run of the year and his sixth run in his last eight games.

Both teams would go scoreless from the top of the sixth to the top of the eighth, largely thanks to the effort of relief pitcher Joe Ball. The lefty from Lewis-Clark State turned in  his best outing of the year, setting new season highs with four innings of scoreless baseball and six strikeouts.

“Joe Ball kept us in that game and did a great job of getting out of some tough spots,” Folz said.

In the eighth, the Sweets were able to break through and take a lead that they would not relinquish. A single, error and a walk loaded the bases with one out for Sweets leadoff hitter Paul Myro IV. The Walla Walla infielder ripped a 2-2 fastball down the right field line for a bases clearing triple, giving the Sweets an 8-7 lead. Parker Price would single in Myro IV one batter later, giving Price a season high four hits and the Sweets a 9-7 advantage.

Sweets closer Eric Romo ran into a bases loaded jam in the ninth, but struck out two hitters in a row to close it out and earn his sixth save of the summer. Romo is now tied for the WCL lead in saves.

Ball earned his first win of the season for Walla Walla, while Eli Ankeney picked up the loss for Bend. The two teams combined for 27 hits, with Price leading the way for the Sweets with four. Gavin Logan had a four hit night for Bend.

The two teams meet again Saturday at Borleske Stadium starting at 7:05. Tickets are available at www.sweetstickets.com.

Sweets starter Travis Craven put together one of the best outings of the year by a Sweets pitcher in a 1-0 loss to the Wenatchee AppleSox Thursday.

The left-hander from Whitman College threw eight scoreless innings and struck out 14 batters, the most by a Sweets pitcher this season. Craven surpassed the previous high by Calvin Kirchoff, who had 11 punchouts on July 17.

Craven , who had a season high of six strikeouts coming in, mixed speeds and locations effectively to keep the AppleSox hitters off balance.

“I felt I did a good job mixing sequences and locations throughout the game,” Craven said. “I felt like I did a good job with two strikes and was able to work around the zone very well.”

Craven stayed in the zone from the beginning of his start to the end. 71 of the 91 pitches Craven threw found the strike zone. The left-hander also did not surrender a walk and allowed just three hits.

The Wenatchee pitching staff was outstanding in their own right on the other side, as pitching ruled this game throughout. AppleSox starter Jacob Hughes put together his best outing of the season, striking out a season best eight hitters while allowing just three hits and walking three.

The lone run of the game came in the top of the ninth inning. Dakota Duffalo reached on an error by the third baseman Eli Paton off of Sweets reliever Caden Kaelber. After Duffalo was picked off at second, Adam Grob drew a walk. After a strikeout to John Newman Jr. and a walk to Luc Stuka to put runners on second and third, Collin Villegas reached on an errant throw by Parker Price that scored Grob from third.

Gavin Gorrell picked up the win for Wenatchee. The lefty from the University of Utah pitched three scoreless innings in relief of Hughes and struck out four batters, including three straight punchouts in the bottom of the ninth to end the game. Caden Kaelber was charged with the loss, but did not allow an earned run.

The Sweets and AppleSox both sit at 13-20 overall on the year. The Sweets are now 4-5 in the second half and are now two games out of first in the North Division second half standings to the Yakima Valley Pippins.

The Sweets begin a three-game weekend series Friday at Borleske Stadium when they host the Bend Elks.

The Walla Walla Sweets put forth one of their best team efforts of the season Wednesday in an 8-2 victory over the Wenatchee AppleSox.

The Sweets used a combination of effective pitching, timely hitting and slick fielding to secure their 13th victory in league play and even the three-game series at one apiece.

Jack Sheward, who set a new season high with three runs batted in, drove in two runs in the bottom of the second on a triple to left center field. Sheward recorded multiple RBIs in a game for the first time this season.

For the first 5 1/3 innings, the AppleSox were unable to get a man aboard thanks to dominant pitching from Andrew Baughn. The right-hander made quite the first impression in his Sweets debut, throwing four perfect innings while striking out five batters on just 48 pitches.

Wenatchee tied the game on a two-run double to center by Michael O’Hara off Sweets releiver Jacob Dahlstrom. O’Hara picked up his second double of the series and scored Enzo Apodaca and Aidan Selfridge after they reached on a double and an error, respectively. Selfridge was the first man to reach base for Wenatchee after the first 16 batters were set down in order.

From that point on, the Sweets took full control of the game. Walla Walla would post two, three-run innings in the bottom of the seventh and eighth to run away with the win.

In the seventh, the Sweets got their first two men on base on back-to-back singles by Sheward and Chris Conniff. After a Paul Myro IV sacrifice bunt, Seth Ryberg hit a flyball over Apodaca’s head in left to score two on a double. Justin Folz would drive in Ryberg two batters later, giving Folz his 10th RBI of the summer.

In the eighth, the Sweets added some insurance runs. After a Sheward sacrifice fly, Myro IV blasted a two run home run over the left center field fence off AppleSox reliever Alex Brady.

Myro IV now has two home runs on the season. He finished the game 2-for-3 with two RBIs and picked up his fourth mulit hit game in his last seven contests. Sheward led the team with three RBIs while going 2-for-3.

Nick Irwin threw two scoreless innings of relief to pick up his first win of the season. After earning his first win of the summer against Walla Walla June 10, Jared Engman was charged with his first loss.

The rubber match of this three-game series begins tomorrow at 6:35 PST. Tickets are available at www.sweetstickets.com.

The Walla Walla Sweets struggled to produce timely hits Tuesday in a 7-1 loss to the Wenatchee AppleSox.

The Sweets had opportunities throughout the game to score with men on base, including a bases loaded, nobody out situation, but couldn’t cash in with the exception of the fifth inning.

The lone run of the game for Walla Walla came on a fifth inning RBI triple by Chris Conniff. Conniff drove in his seventh run of the season and now leads the team with three triples.

Outside of that inning, the Sweets were held scoreless and left eight men on base in total. The Sweets started the bottom of the sixth with three singles to load the bases, but reliever Michael DeFelippi struck out the next two batters he faced. Cayden Delozier lined out to third to end the inning as the AppleSox left-hander escaped unscathed.

Wenatchee took control of the game early and never relinquished the lead. Michael O’Hara started the game with a double, and was driven in by an RBI triple by Adam Grob two batters later. Grob picked up his first triple of the summer along with his team leading 23rd run batted in.

Wenatchee posted two more runs in the fourth off of two errors. Following his leadoff walk, Tino Bethancourt scored on an errant throw by catcher Colin Wetterau. Luc Stuka scored the other run of the inning on a dropped fly ball in right field.

The AppleSox took a commanding lead in the ninth after neither team scored from the fifth through eighth. Wenatchee picked up five consecutive hits to start the inning and posted a four run, five hit top of the ninth. The inning was highlighted by two two-run singles by John Newman Jr. and Dakota Duffalo.

Mason Kokodynski, the starter for the Sweets who had the second best ERA in the WCL entering the game, was charged with his first loss of the season. The Sweets ace went five innings and allowed two earned runs with four strikeouts.

Cole Hatton picked up the win as the starter for Wenatchee. He also threw five innings and allowed five hits, one earned run, three walks and struck out five. The AppleSox bullpen got four scoreless innings from their two best relievers in terms of ERA, DeFelippi and Skylar Hales. Hales picked up a three inning save while striking out four hitters.

The Sweets and AppleSox meet again Wednesday at Borleske Stadium starting at 6:35 PST.

The Walla Walla Sweets moved into first place in the North Division standings Saturday with a 5-2 win over the Port Angeles Lefties.

The Sweets are now 12-17 overall and 3-2 in the second half. Walla Walla leads the Yakima Valley Pippins by one game in the division.

Sweets starter Calvin Kirchoff turned in one of the best performances of the season by a Sweets pitcher. The right hander from Bellevue Community College set a new single game high for a Sweets pitcher with 11 strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.

Kirchoff has 19 strikeouts in two starts to begin his Sweets career. For the second start in a row, the Sammamish, Washington, native allowed just two hits.

Offensively, the Sweets got all the runs they would need in the first inning. With two outs, Colin Wetterau picked up a single. Lefties third baseman Carson Crawford committed a costly error on the next play after dropping a popup on the infield. With runners at first and second, Eli Paton blasted a three run home run to give the Sweets a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

The Sweets scored two more times in the top of the fifth off Lefties starter Luke Jewett. A walk and two singles by Paul Myro IV, Parker Price and Wetterau loaded the bases for Folz. The Sweets right fielder drove in a run on a sacrific fly, with Paton quick to follow with another one batter later.

Paton finished the game 1-4 with four runs batted in, tying Cameron Butler for the most by a Sweet this season in a single game.

The Lefties scored once in the bottom of the third on a sacrifice fly by Javy Espinosa. Their only other run of the game came on a throwing error back to Kirchoff by catcher Jack Sheward.

The Sweets got 3 1/3 scoreless innings out of their bullpen. Caden Kaelber appeared for the second night in a row and threw 2 1/3 scoreless innings. Kaelber is now tied for third in the league in strikeouts with 38.

Eric Romo entered in the ninth and struck out the side. Romo recorded his fifth save of the year, which is second in the WCL.

The Sweets and Lefties play their series finale Sunday at 1:35 from Civic Field.

The Walla Walla Sweets used a combination of balanced hitting and effective pitching to take down the Port Angeles Lefties Friday.

The Sweets got a hit from every starter in the lineup Friday, the first time this season Walla Walla has accomplished that feat. Three players, Paul Myro IV, Coin Wetterau and Justin Folz, had multiple hits.

The Sweets went down 1-0 in the second, but took the game over from there.  Walla Walla strung together four runs on just one hit in the top of the fourth. Niko Khoury drove in Parker Price from second on an error by the first baseman Ethan Flodstrom. After Justin Folz scored on a wild pitch during Seth Ryberg’s at bat, two runs scored on a dropped third strike to Cayden Delozier and a throwing error by Port Angeles catcher Nathan Chong.

The Sweets bats would get going in the fifth, five of the first six batters in the inning singled as part of a three run fifth for Walla Walla. Wetterau, Niko Khoury and Matthew Clark all knocked in runs on singles.

Wetterau and Folz would both go on to drive in runs on back-to-back singles in the top of the eighth. Wetterau finished the night with three runs batted in to lead the team.

The Sweets got a solid effort from four different pitchers. With the exception of one run in the second, Sweets starter James Hepp was efficient on the bump. The UCLA commit went four innings and allowed one earned run with five strikeouts in his longest outing of the year.

Logan Hurd picked up right where Hepp left off. The LMU left-hander went 3 2/3 innings and recorded his second highest strikeout total of the season with five. Caden Kaelber recorded the final out in the eighth before Evan Harmon closed the game in the ninth.

The Lefties were able to muster just four hits against the Sweets. Coleman Schmidt was the highlight of the game for Port Angeles, going 2-for-4 with a solo home run to left. Along with his second home run, Schmidt also singled in a run as part of a two RBI night.

The Sweets are now 2-2 in the second half and tied for first in the North Division in the second half. Walla Walla is back in action Saturday at 6:35 to face the Lefties at Civic Field in Port Angeles.

The Portland Pickles posted 15 runs on 18 hits Thursday in a 10-run win over the Sweets.

After posting two runs in the first inning, Portland’s offense exploded for six runs in the bottom of the third. The Pickles scored seven more in the next three innings to run away with the game.

With the game tied at two in the third, Leo Mosby got the scoring started for the Pickles with a two run single. Daniel Hirose singled in two more and was followed by a two run single by Gabriel Arellano to cap off a six run, seven hit bottom of the third for Portland.

The Pickles picked up four more runs in the fifth on a grand slam from Ryan Guardino. The outfielder from Wofford was one of seven Pickles with multiple hits in the game. Matt Jew led the way with three hits and three runs.

Matthew Clark led the offense for Walla Walla with a solo home run to left center. Clark is the second Sweet to record multiple home runs this season after hitting his second home run of the season.

Seth Ryberg was 1-for-5 with two RBIs for the Sweets. Ryberg doubled in two runs in the top of the third to tie the game.

Eric Marrujo pitched three innings for the Pickles, allowing one earned run and picking up the win in his second appearance against Walla Walla. Jacob Dahlstrom, who threw 2 1/3 innings and allowed six earned runs, was charged with the loss.

The Pickles upped their record to 17-10 and 2-1 in the second half, while the Sweets dropped to 10-17 overall and 1-2 in the second half. The Sweets are two games out of the second playoff spot in the North Division to the Bellingham Bells.

The Sweets hit the road again tomorrow to start a three-game series against the Port Angeles Lefties. First pitch is set for 6:35 PST from Civic Field in Port Angeles, Washington.

The Portland Pickles used six pitchers Wednesday in a combined shutout victory over the Walla Walla Sweets.

The loss marked the second time this season the Sweets have been shut out. Walla Walla falls to 10-16 on the year, while Portland improved to 16-10.

The Pickles starter, Alex Giroux,  started the game for Portland with three scoreless innings. Walla Walla had chances early with runners in scoring position against the right-hander, but were unable to register a hit with men on second and third. In total, the Sweets left five men on in the game.

The Pickles bullpen delivered yet another solid performance. The Pickles got six innings of scoreless baseball  between five different hurlers. Jared Villalobos, Ryan Sveningston, Scott Wright, Elias Farland and Josh Mollerus combined for eight strikeouts in those innings.

The Pickles offense got going early against Sweets starter Travis Craven. After the first batter of the bottom of the first was set down, the Pickles put four straight men on base on the strength of a walk and three singles. Reigning WCL Player of the Week Leo Mosby capped off the run with an RBI single.

The Pickles struck again in the fourth, this time forcing an unearned run home against Craven. After leadoff Ryan Guardino reached on an error, stole second, and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt, catcher Max Shor delivered a line drive single to right to plate another run.

The Pickles would score two more times, once in the sixth and another in seventh, to cap off a 4-0 victory. Leo Mosby singled in another run in the sixth, with Kyle Dernedde adding another run in the seventh to score Gabriel Arellano after his leadoff double to right.

Travis Craven went four innings in his team leading sixth start of the year. The Goleta, California, native allowed just one earned run on five hits while striking out two.

Dylan Schwartz and Will Grimm pitched the remainder of the game for Walla Walla. Schwartz struck out four batters while allowing two runs in 2 1/3 innings. Grimm entered the game with the bases loaded and one out in the seventh and retired the final five batters of the game for Portland.

Paul Myro IV highlighted the Sweets lineup with two of the team’s hits. Colin Wetterau also doubled to extend his hit streak to 17 games and on base streak to 19.

The Sweets conclude their three-game series with Portland Thursday evening at 7:05 PST.

The Walla Walla Sweets squeezed out a thrilling victory over the Portland Pickles Tuesday.

The Sweets snapped a four-game skid with a 2-1 victory over Portland, improving to 10-15 on the year. Walla Walla also took home its first win over the Pickles this season.

Neither team produced a run through the first six innings. Mason Kokodynski delivered his best start of the season, throwing six scoreless innings with five strikeouts on the bump while allowing just three hits.

Kokodynski lowered his ERA to 1.61 on the season, the second best mark in the West Coast League. The right-hander from LMU used his fastball, slider and changeup to keep Pickles hitters off balance.

The Sweets broke open the scoring in the seventh and held the lead until the end. Justin Folz started off the inning with a double and was moved to third by a ground ball by Seth Ryberg. With the infield moved in, Will Grimm bounced a ball to second that scored Justin Folz. Grimm later scored on an error to cap off the scoring for the Sweets.

Logan Hurd worked 1 2/3 scoreless innings before handing the ball to Caden Kaelber. Kaelber recorded the final out in the bottom of the eighth with runners on first and second, striking out pinch hitter Jacob Jablonski.

In the ninth, the Pickles cut the lead in half with two outs of Kaelber. Matt Jew picked up a lead off double and later scored on a pinch hit double by Eamonn Lance. After a pop up dropped on the infield in front of Kaelber, the right-hander forced a ground out from Connor Henriques to first to strand two runners on and pick up the save.

The two squads meet again Wednesday night at 7:05 PST. The game can be streamed at www.mixlr.com/sweetsbaseball.

The Portland Pickles defeated the Walla Walla Sweets Sunday 8-1, completing a weekend series sweep for Portland.

The Pickles finish the first half of the West Coast League season 15-9, while the Sweets fall to 9-15 after one half of play. The Sweets have now lost their last four games.

The game started off tightly contested and low scoring through five innings. The Sweets got a solid performance from starting pitcher Calvin Kirchoff, who just arrived in Walla Walla 24 hours prior to first pitch. The right-hander from Bellevue Community College went five innings and struck out eight batters while allowing one earned run.

The Pickles scored the first run of the game in the top of the second inning. After an error at second by Paul Myro IV with two outs, a stolen base and a wild pitch, Jacob Jablonski drove in Leo Mosby on a single to right.

The Sweets tied the game in the bottom of the third off a leadoff walk to Nation Wood and an RBI triple to right center by Seth Ryberg. Ryberg picked up his first triple of the year while driving in his 11th run of the year.

The Pickles would score the next seven runs of the game starting in the fifth. Eamonn Lance launched a solo home run to left field to start the inning, his second homer of the season. The home run was just one of two hits allowed by Kirchoff.

The Pickles broke the game open in the seventh inning with six runs. The Pickles posted a six spot with five hits, all of which came with two outs. The inning was highlighted by a two-run single by Ivan Luna, an RBI double by Ryan Guardino, and an RBI single by Leo Mosby.

Nick Brink, the first reliever for Portland, picked up the victory on the mound. The Pickles threw a scoreless outing for the second straight game, as four different pitchers combined to go six innings while striking out seven batters.

The Sweets have the day off Monday before traveling to Portland on Tuesday for three more games against the Pickles.

The Walla Walla Sweets were unable to consistently find the strike zone as a pitching staff Saturday, dropping their third straight game in a 10-5 loss to the Portland Pickles.

After walking 10 batters in the series opener, the Sweets surrendered a season high  12 free passes Saturday between six different pitchers.

The Pickles picked up their ninth win in their last 11 games while taking the series and improving to 14-9. The Sweets fall to 9-14 with the loss and have lost six of their last eight league games.

The Sweets got the first two runs of the game on back-to-back RBI singles by Niko Khoury and Colin Wetterau. Wetterau extended his hitting streak to 15 games with the first inning base hit and has 24 hits in his last 15 games.

After a clean first inning, Sweets starter James Hepp lost his command and issued five walks in the second inning. This led to a four-run inning and Hepp being removed after 1 2/3 innings of work.

The Sweets tied the game in the bottom of the second with two runs. After a Quentin Ayers leadoff single and a double by Jack Sheward, Ayers later scored on a wild pitch before Parker Price drove in Sheward on a groundout.

The Pickles would then score two runs in the fourth, fifth and sixth innings. The three inning run was highlighted by a solo, pinch hit home run to left by Carter Booth, who replaced leadoff hitter Cam Clayton.

Leo Mosby led the offensive attack yet again for the Pickles with two hits. The Portland infielder has five hits in the series, has a five-game hit streak going, and has seven runs batted in during that span.

Portland also continued its impressive stretch. After starter Kyle Ethridge struggled out of the gate and allowed four earned runs in 1 2/3 innings, the Pickles bullpen picked up eight strikeouts and allowed just one earned run through 7 1/3 innings of work.

Eric Marrujo picked up the victory for Portland, while Logan Hurd was saddled with his second loss of the season.

The two teams meet for the series finale Sunday evening at 6:05.

The Walla Walla Sweets dropped their first of six consecutive games against the Portland Pickles Friday by a score of 10-3.

The Pickles took control in the second inning and didn’t look back. Portland has now won eight of its last 11 games and improved to 13-9 with the win. The Sweets fall to 9-13 with the loss.

Two Pickles hitters stood out in this contest. Leo Mosby got things started with a solo home run to left in the second off Sweets starter Jacob Dahlstrom. Matt Jew then doubled in two runs in the top of the third to give Portland a 3-0 lead.

The Sweets responded with an RBI single by Parker Price in the bottom half of the third. Price poked a ground ball between third and short into left field to score Nation Wood.

From there, the Pickles scored seven consecutive runs. Justin DeCriscio grounded in a run off Dylan Schwartz after Dahlstrom was removed one batter into the third. Schwartz finished his outing with three scoreless innings and five strikeouts. He has not allowed a run in each of his last seven innings of work.

Neither team would score again until the eighth, where the Pickles would put up four runs. Jew picked up another RBI double to finish the night with two hits and three runs driven in. A wild pitch, RBI double by Mosby and an error brought in the other three runs of the half inning.

Mosby highlighted the offensive attack for Portland. He finished with three hits, two runs and two RBIs.

Justin Folz and Eli Paton both picked up RBIs for the Sweets in the bottom of the ninth, but the deficit was too large to overcome. Folz drove his fifth run in on a groundout, while Paton singled in a run to right center.

The Pickles got a solid effort from four pitchers in this game. The combination of Alonzo Treadwell, Scott Wright, Chris Baytosh and Ian Lawson combined for 11 strikeouts, with Wright picking up the victory.

Both teams meet again tomorrow night starting at 7:05 PST at Borleske Stadium. Tickets are available at www.sweetstickets.com.

The Yakima Valley Pippins used two two-run home runs to take down the Sweets Wednesday by a score of 6-4.

Alex Shanks, who hit a two-run home run in the first game of the series, added to his total with another two-run blast to left in the top of the fourth. Mason Marenco launched the other two-run home run for the Pippins in the sixth that would ultimately be the deciding factor.

Alex Fernandes got the scoring started for the Pippins in the second inning. After Shanks reached base as part of a three-hit night, Fernandes drove him and Chase Graves in on a single to right-center just out of the reach of the second baseman Cameron Butler.

The Sweets were quick to respond in the bottom half of the second inning. Colin Wetterau led off the inning with an opposite field double. Will Grimm drove him in one pitch later on a groundball into right field, picking up his 10th RBI in the process.

Shanks was not the only player to hit a home run in the fourth. In his first game as a Sweet, Matthew Clark launched a two-run shot over the left field fence in his second at-bat as a Sweet.

Clark finished the game 1-for-4, but also had a long flyout to left center. On top of playing efficiently in center, Clark was happy with his performance in his debut.

“It felt great to get that first home run,” Clark said. “I felt comfortable throughout the night and am glad I was able to deliver.”

After the two-run home run by Marenco in the sixth, the Sweets would score one more run in the eighth on a sacrifice fly by Grimm. The Sweets sent the winning run to the plate in the ninth in Wetterau, but struck out with runners on first and second.

Travis Craven picked up his second loss of the year. He went four innings for the Sweets and allowed four earned runs. Kenny Johnson earned his third victory for the Pippins after going six innings and striking out six batters.

In relief, Owen Wild pitched effectively and earned his second consecutive three inning save. He struck out six batters and allowed one earned run, throwing 63 pitches out of the bullpen.

For the Sweets, Connor Cirillo, Caden Kaelber and Eric Romo combined for five innings in relief. The trio struck out six batters while allowing just two runs on four hits.

The Sweets fall to 9-12 with the loss, while the Pippins finish their first half 15-9. The Sweets have an off day Thursday before hosting the Portland Pickles this weekend starting Friday evening.

It was a night of two big innings for the Walla Walla Sweets, who prevailed over the Yakima Valley Pippins by a score of 13-4.

The Sweets posted new season highs in runs (13), runs in a single inning (eight), and margin of victory (nine).

The Pippins put up the first three runs of the ballgame in the top of the third inning off Sweets starter Mason Kokodynski. Leadoff hitter Chaz Myers doubled to score Alex Fernandes, an unearned run as Fernades reached on an error. Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek then drove in two runs on a single for his multi-RBI game of the year.

From there, it was all Sweets. The next 13 runs of the contest were scored by the Sweets, the most unanswered runs the Sweets have posted this season.

The Sweets started the run with five runs off Pippins starter Kirby Robertson in the fifth inning. After a Paul Myro IV walk and a Parker Price single, Seth Ryberg drove in his team leading 10th RBI on a base hit. After a Colin Wetterau RBI single, Cameron Butler broke things open with a three-run home run into left center field, the first three-run home run of the year for Walla Walla.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Sweets ran away with the game thanks to timely hitting and several walks from the Pippins pitching staff. The Sweets posted eight runs in the inning on just three hits, as three Pippins pitchers walked seven hitters.

Chris Conniff got the scoring started with a fielders choice. Butler then drove in his fourth run of the night on a single, a new season high for a Sweet in a single game. A Nation Wood sacrifice fly, Myro IV two-run single, a wild pitch to score Connor Cirillo, and a two-run single by Wetterau rounded out the scoring for the Sweets in the seventh.

Pitching wise, the Sweets got five solid innings from Kokodynski. The right-hander struck out a season high eight batters while allowing just two earned runs and four hits. Dylan Schwartz relieved Kokodynski and set down six straight batters in two innings, striking out three in the process.

Evan Harmon closed the game for the Sweets with two innings of work, allowing zero earned runs while striking out two.

Kokodynski picked up his second win of the year in two decisions, while Robertson was hit with the loss. The Pippins pitching staff walked ten batters, tying the season high for most walks to the Sweets lineup.

The Sweets  improve to 9-11 with the win, while the Pippins fall to 14-9. The two teams meet for the rubber match of a three-game set tomorrow starting at 6:35 PST.

A three-run eighth inning propelled the Sweets to a 5-3 win over the NW Star Nighthawks Saturday.

The Sweets, playing in front of their largest crowd of over 1,000 spectators, earned a comeback victory on their “Super Saturday” promotion night.

Sweets catcher Colin Wetterau, who tallied two hits and extended his hit streak to 10 games, was one of many players who enjoyed the Borleske Stadium atmosphere.

“The crowd tonight was awesome and its great to play in front of so many fans,” Wetterau said. “The crowd was electric tonight and you could feel it on the field.”

The Nighthawks jumped out to the early lead in the first with two runs. From there, three position players held the Nighthawks scoreless until the ninth inning.

Connor Cirillo started for Walla Walla in his second pitching appearance of the season.  He went four innings and allowed two runs and two strikeouts, while holding the Nighthawks scoreless for his final three innings of work.

Chris Conniff took over after Cirillo and threw scoreless innings, striking out two and allowing just two hits. Parker Price then put two zeros on the board in the seventh and eighth innings without allowing a hit.

Hitting wise, the Sweets got on the board in the third inning on a Paul Myro IV sacrifice fly. Wetterau later drove in a run in the fifth to tie the game at two.

In the eighth, the Sweets pulled away. After a Wetterau leadoff single and two bunts from Myro IV and Price to load the bases, Will Grimm drove in the lead run on a sacrifice fly. Cameron Butler then singled and reached second on an error that drove in two runs.

Dylan Schwartz closed the game in the ninth, stranding two runners in scoring position. With the victory, the Sweets improve to 13-13 overall including non-league games.

The Sweets have the Fourth of July off before hosting the Yakima Valley Pippins on Monday back at Borleske Stadium.

The Walla Walla Sweets lost the first game of a two-game non-league series Friday, falling to the NW Star Nighthawks by a score of 9-7.

In their first of two meetings this season, the teams went back and forth from start to finish. There were five lead changes throughout the game.

The Sweets put together one of their best hitting games of the season. Three different Walla Walla batters left the yard, two of them doing so for the first time this season in Cameron Butler and Jack Sheward. Justin Folz added the other home run, his second of the season.

The Sweets totaled 11 hits in the game, with first baseman turned pitcher William Grimm pacing the lineup with three.

NW Star took the lead in the first inning, but the Sweets quickly tied the game in the bottom half after Colin Wetterau tripled and scored on a wild pitch. Jack Sheward’s first home run of the year made it a 2-1 Sweets game after two innings.

After the Nighthawks scored the next four runs of the game, the Sweets put together one of their best offensive innings of the season. Folz and Butler each launched solo home runs as part of a three run inning, with Sheward driving in Quentin Ayers and scoring himself off three errant throws by the Nighthawks.

After both teams picked up a run in the seventh, the Nighthawks plated the final three runs in the eighth and ninth. Travis Helm drove in two runs on a two-out double in the eighth, and Carter Monda added on an RBI single in the ninth to lead to the 9-7 final score.

Evan Harmon went three innings for the Sweets in his first start of the year. He allowed three earned runs on three walks and four strikeouts. Turner Edwards, Cayden Delozier and Will Grimm combined to throw six innings out of the bullpen, allowing six runs.

The Sweets host the NW Star Nighthawks for “Super Saturday” at Borleske Stadium at 7:05.

In their second extra-inning  game of the week, the Sweets fell short in 15 innings against the Cowlitz Black Bears.

The Sweets have now played 15 innings in multiple games in the same week for the first time in team history. With the loss, the Sweets fall to 8-10 but remain in second place in the West Coast League North Division.

The Sweets got the first run in the ballgame on an RBI single by Jack Sheward in the bottom of the fifth. The first seven innings were dominated by pitching, with each starter going at least innings.

Travis Craven turned in a solid outing for Walla Walla. The left-hander went six innings and did not allow a run while surrendering just four hits. He also struck out five batters without issuing a walk.

Izaak Martinez was equally as effective on the other side for Cowlitz. The left-hander from California went 6 1/3 innings and allowed one unearned run. Like Carven, Martinez did not strike out many hitters but forced plenty of groundballs and flyouts.

Both teams did not get going offensively until the eighth inning. With two outs in the top of the eighth, the Black Bears on an unorthodox triple to shallow left. A shallow line drive to left field looked to be caught by left fielder Niko Khoury, but was then ruled as a hit. Weber advanced to third on the play due to the Sweets holding the ball and not knowing if the play was still live.

That triple set up cleanup hitter Henry Muench, who launched a two-run home run four pitches later over the scoreboard in left to make it 3-1 Black Bears.

The Sweets responded with a two-run home run over their own to tie it up at 3 in the bottom half of the inning. Eli Paton sent a fly ball over the right field fence for his first round tripper as a Sweet. Paton is now the sixth Sweet to hit a home run this year.

From the eighth all the way to the 15th, a bullpen battle ensued. For the next six innings, neither team mustered up a run. Nick Irwin turned in his best outing of the season in relief, going 5 1/3 scoreless innings while striking out a season high three hitters.

Cowlitz once again had a strong outing bullpen wise. The Black Bears, who entered this series with the second best bullpen ERA in the league, got 8 2/3 innings of two-run baseball from their relievers after their bullpen did not allow a single run in game two of the series.

Cary Arbolida ultimately picked up the game-winning single for the Black Bears on a hard ground ball into shallow left field in the top of the 15th. Jeff Nelson picked up his first win as a Black Bear while Noah Serna was hit with the loss for Walla Walla.

The Sweets return to Borleske Stadium Friday night to face the Northwest Star Nighthawks starting at 7:05.

There was never a doubt in the outcome of Tuesday’s contest between the Sweets and Cowlitz Black Bears.

The Sweets timely hitting and balanced hitting to get back to .500 and win their third game in four tries this year against the Cowlitz Black Bears.

After a much needed day off to relax following their 16-inning game on Sunday, the longest game in team history, the Sweets looked recharged out of the gate Tuesday. Walla Walla took the lead early in the ballgame and never relinquished it, as the Sweets remain in second place and are now 8-8 in league games in 2021.

The Sweets have been getting off to much faster starts offensively in recent games, and that trend continued Tuesday. The Sweets scored in the first inning for the fourth game in a row thanks to a solo home run from Seth Ryberg, a double by Justin Folz, and an RBI single from Eli Paton.

“We’ve been taking a lot better approaches at the plate lately and have been seeing the ball a lot better,” Ryberg said. “Sunday’s game was a big turning point for our season. We are really starting to gel as a team and get some timely hits.”

Seven different hitters picked up a base hit for Walla Walla Tuesday. The Sweets used three two-run innings and one more in the seventh to pick up the 7-3 victory.

On the pitching side, the Sweets used four different arms to pick up the victory. Jacob Dahlstrom started the game and went 3.2 innings, striking out three and walking three while allowing just one earned run in his first league start.

The most impressive pitcher of the night was Logan Hurd. The southpaw accomplished something no other Sweet has done in a game this year, striking out the side twice in one outing. He set a new season high six strikeouts in three innings of work.

Travis Craven picked up his league-leading third win of the year. The Sweets held Cowlitz to just four hits, as the Black Bears fell to 6-10 and fifth in the South Division.

The Sweets and Black Bears meet again Wednesday night starting at 7:05 from Borleske Stadium.

The Yakima Valley Pippins responded to their loss on Friday in a big way Saturday in their win against the Sweets.

After losing a four run lead in the late innings in the series opener, the Pippins came back Saturday and took control in the middle innings thanks to timely hitting and excellent starting pitching.

Tyler Frieders, the starter for Yakima Valley and a Yakima Valley CC product, turned in his best start of the year and the best outing of the year for a Pippins starter. He went seven innings and set a new Pippins season high with 10 strikeouts while allowing just one run and two hits.

The Sweets scored first for the second game in a row thanks to a Paul Myro IV walk and a Parker Price RBI double, his fourth run driven in in the series.

From there, the Sweets could not figure out Frieders. Walla Walla had just one hit from the second through seventh inning and wouldn’t score again until Myro IV blasted a two run home run off the scoreboard in left in the eighth.

The Pippins offense got going in the second inning on a two-run single from Spencer Marenco. Yakima Valley wasted no time getting on the board in the third after Noah Williamson took the first pitch of the inning down the left field line for a triple. Blake Dickman drove him home one batter later on a sacrifice fly.

The Pippins big inning came in the fourth after Sweets starter Jake Dahle was removed after three innings. The Pippins used four walks from Sweets reliever Noah Serna and two errors from shortstop Parker Price to push across four runs. Walks came back to the haunt the Sweets, with the pitching staff registering a season high 10 free passes.

Frieders earned his first win of the 2021 season, while Dahle was hit with his first defeat. The Sweets put up four runs late in the game with two in the eighth and ninth innings against Pippins reliever Joey Cammarata, but were unable to complete the comeback in a 9-5 defeat.

The rubber match of the series is set for Sunday at 7:05 PST.

The Sweets entered the top of the eighth inning down 7-3 Friday night against their rival the Yakima Valley Pippins.

With their backs against the wall, the Sweets fought back and willed themselves to a 9-7 victory to pull within one game of first in the North Division.

Four of the first five batters reached base on a walk to start the eighth inning, with Justin Folz picking up an RBI without having to swing the bat. After Colin Wetterau drove in Paul Myro on a groundout, Seth Ryberg came through with a line drive single to right center to score two runs and tie the game at seven.

After Caden Kaelber set down the Pippins in the bottom of the eighth, the Sweets got right back to work in the ninth and took advantage of some costly mistakes from the Pippins. After Yakima Valley shortstop Connor Coballes botted a groundball to start the ninth, Nation Wood dropped a bunt single in front of the mound. A Myro walk brought Parker Price to the plate, and he delivered a two-run single to make it 9-7 where the game would end.

For the Sweets, the win was their second this year when trailing after the seventh inning. Walla Walla is now 7-6 and trails the first place Pippins by one game.

Parker Price also ripped a solo home run in the ball game, finishing the contest with two hits and three runs batted in to tie the season high for a Sweet in a single game this year. Eli Paton collected two hits as well.

Caden Kaelber picked up his second win of the year and matched a season high with five strikeouts. Eric Romo earned his league-leading fourth save.

For Yakima Valley, Noah Williamson led the way hitting with two hits and four RBIs. He had a three-run home run in the game as well.

The Sweets and Pippins meet again Saturday for game two of the series starting at 7:35. The game can be streamed at www.mixlr.com/sweetsbaseball.

After six consecutive games that were decided by fewer than two runs, the Sweets left no doubt Wednesday in their matchup against the CCL All-Stars.

The Sweets picked up three runs in the bottom of the first inning and one more in the second on their way to a 9-3 victory.

Parker Price started the offensive attack early for Walla Walla with a solo blast to left field. With a one-run lead two at-bats into the game, the Sweets continued the rally in the first frame. After an Eli Paton walk, Justin Folz and Colin Wetterau hit back-to-back doubles, with Wetterau driving in two to complete a three-run first inning.

The Sweets totaled 12 hits in the ballgame, with Seth Ryberg leading the way with three base hits. Eli Paton had his best game as a Sweet thus far, collecting two doubles and an RBI.

The Sweets never trailed throughout the game after a back-and-forth first game of the series. Jacob Dahlstrom threw four innings of two-run ball as the starter for the Sweets, while the bullpen of Noah Serna, James Hepp, Mason Kokodynski and Will Grimm combined for five innings, one run and nine strikeouts. Serna picked up the win in his Sweets debut.

CCL cut the deficit to 4-2 on a two-run shot by Zane Skansi, but the Sweets put the game out of reach with five runs between the seventh and eighth innings. Wetterau added another RBI for three total on the evening, while Justin Folz, Cameron Butler and Paul Myro each drove in a run late to seal the game.

The Sweets go for a three-game sweep tomorrow at 6:35 against the CCL All-Stars. Tickets are available at www.sweetstickets.com

Strikeouts have been a strength of the Walla Walla Sweets pitching staff all year, and they put it on full display again Sunday in a 4-2 win over the Highline Bears.

The Sweets matched their season high with 18 strikeouts, with four pitchers combining to achieve the feat. The Sweets have recorded at least ten strikeouts in all but one of their games in 2021.

Dylan Schwartz cruised through the first three innings for Walla Walla. The Sweets starter retired the first nine hitters he faced and struck out six of them.

The Sweets got the first runs of the game in the bottom of the third. Following a leadoff walk from Colin Wetterau, Niko Khoury drove a triple to right center to make it a 1-0 game. Cameron Butler picked up an RBI on a sacrifice fly one plate appearance later.

After drawing three walks in the fourth, the Bears tied the game on a two-run single by Kyle Casperson. Schwartz was relived after 3.1 innings by Logan Hurd, who tossed 2.2 innings and picked up the win while striking out four. He worked his way out of bases loaded jam in the fourth and a second and third base spot in the fifth.

James Hepp entered the game in the sixth and was dialed in from his first pitch on. He struck our four consecutive batters to start his appearance and finished the night with five punchouts in two innings of one-hit, no-run pitching.

Niko Khoury delivered again in the fourth with a sacrifice fly to right as part of a two RBI game. The final run of the game came on a groundball single to right by Connor Cirillo to score Wetterau.

The crowd and both benches came to life in the eighth inning due to a controversial double play call. After Nation Wood was called out on a bases loaded lineout by Cameron Butler, the Bears threw the ball to each base after the play was dead and the hit was ruled a ground ball. When only two outs were recorded instead of three and with runners still at first and second, Bears manager Ben Reindel came out to argue the call and was ejected, riling up the Sweets dugout and crowd on his way out of the park.

Caden Kaelber picked up the save for the Sweets, who took the series finale and the series. Both teams were hurt by walks in this contest, with each squad surrendering eight free passes.

The Sweets are off Monday before hosting the Cascade Collegiate League All-Stars Tuesday at 6:35 PST. Tickets can be purchased at www.wallawallasweets.com.

The Walla Walla Sweets edged out a close victory over the Corvallis Knights Thursday by a score of 7-6.

The Sweets now sit at an even 6-6 going into the second half of their 12-game homestand. The win also snaps a five-game winning streak for Corvallis.

Corvallis got things started in this ballgame with two runs in the first, but Walla Wall was quick to answer. The Sweets responded with two runs of their own in the bottom of the first inning thanks to two errors from Corvallis.

The Sweets then put together a four-run second inning to lead it 6-2. Parker Price and Quentin Ayers started things off after  reaching base on a walk and a single. With two outs, the Sweets got two clutch hits on an RBI single from Paul Myro and a two-run triple from Chris Conniff. Conniff later scored on a wild pitch to cap off the inning.

Travis Craven picked up the win for Walla Walla in what was a strong night for the Sweets bullpen. He posted three innings and five strikeouts while allowing no earned runs on three hits.

Caden Kaelber picked up his first save of the year, recording the final six outs of the game. The Knights got a run in the ninth off an RBI single from Nick Vogt, but Kaelber bounced back to bring the Sweets a win. He recorded three strikeouts in two innings and allowed just one hit.

Cameron Butler recorded two hits to lead the way offensively for Walla Walla, including his first double. Conniff and Myro combined to score four runs and picked up three runs batted in as well.

Vogt led the way for Corvallis with two hits and two RBIs.

The Sweets begin a stretch of six non-league games Friday when they host the Highline Bears. First pitch is set for 7:05 at Borleske Stadium.

The Corvallis Knights earned their fifth win in a row Wednesday, defeating the Sweets by a score of 5-3.

For the Knights, this marks their second series win of 2021. They now sit at 6-2 and are in first place in the South Division. The Sweets are 5-6 and tied for third in the North Division.

It was a back-and-forth contest from start to finish. Down 3-2 in the eighth inning, the Sweets tied the game off a Chris Conniff single, a Justin Folz walk, and an RBI single from Will Grimm.

The Sweets had the bases loaded with no outs, but Knights reliever Brock Townsend recorded three straight strikeouts to keep the game deadlocked.

In the top of the ninth inning, Travis Bazzana dropped a drag bunt down the third base line for a hit. After a Thomas Dukart single, Braiden Boisvert came through with the go-ahead base hit after entering the game for the injured Nick Vogt. Tanner Smith added on a base hit to make it 5-3.

Both teams showcased talented bullpen arms in this game. Dylan Schwartz struck out eight batters for Walla Walla in four innings, while Ethan Ross of Corvallis struck out seven hitters in three innings of work. Neither pitcher surrendered a run, and Schwartz set a new season record for a Sweets relief pitcher in strikeouts.

Townsend got the win for Corvallis, while Eric Romo picked up his first loss. Conniff, Grimm and Quentin Ayers all had multi-hit games for Walla Walla.

The Sweets close out a three-game series tonight at 6:35 against Corvallis at Borleske Stadium.

Travis Bazzana drove in four runs and posted three hits as the Corvallis Knights defeated the Sweets 9-2 Tuesday.

The Sweets struck first in the second inning on an RBI single from Paul Myro, but it was all Knights from there. The Knights picked up six runs between the third to fifth inning, highlighted by a two-run single and a three-run triple from Bazzana.

The Australian shortstop continued to showcase why he’s been the best hitter in the WCL, raising his average to a league-best .485. Bazzana’s four runs batted in are a new season high.

Nick Vogt posted a three hit night for Corvallis as well. Tanner Smith sealed it for the Knights with a three-run double to left in the top of the ninth.

The highlight of the night for the Sweets was a home run to left by Nation Wood in the bottom of the ninth. The Saddleback College outfielder drove a first pitch fastball over the opposite field wall for his first home run as a Sweet.

Myro, Parker Price, Chris Conniff and Wood each had multiple hits for the Sweets.

Sean Wiese picked up the win for the Knights. He pitched five innings in relief and did not allow a run while striking out five.

The Sweets host the Knights again Wednesday at 6:35 PST.

The Walla Walla Sweets matched their season high for most runs in an inning Sunday with five in the sixth inning in route to a 6-3 win over the Port Angeles Lefties.

After Lefties starter Corey Sanchez allowed just one run through the first five innings courtesy of a Chris Conniff triple, the Sweets got going in the sixth frame. Walla Walla chased Sanchez after two singles and a walk loaded the bases with nobody out.

From there, Jack Sheward drew a bases loaded walk against relief pitcher Justin Dunham. Chris Conniff drove in another run on a ground out to tie the game at 3-3 before Will Grimm smacked a two-run double to right to make it 6-3, where the game would end.

The Sweets forced the Lefties into three pitching changes in the sixth inning. Dunham was charged with the loss, falling to 0-2.

For Walla Walla, it was a collective, bullpen effort on the mound. The Sweets used a season high seven different pitchers, with no Sweets hurler facing more than eight batters.

Logan Hurd threw two scoreless innings to start the game before turning to Mason Kokodynski, who also posted two zeros and earned his first win of the year. Between the two LMU pitchers and Nick Irwin, Caden Kaelber, Jacob Dahlstrom, Dylan Schwartz and Eric Romo, the Sweets staff combined for 10 strikeouts and allowed just four hits.

Romo earned his third save of the year and has struck out nine hitters in 4.2 innings of work.

The Sweets move to 5-4 and are tied for second in their division with the AppleSox. The Sweets have the day off tomorrow before hosting the Corvallis Knights on Tuesday.

For the first time in over 660 days, the Walla Walla Sweets played and won a game at Borleske Stadium Friday.

In front of a sellout crowd, the Sweets won what turned into a down-to-the wire contest. The Sweets took game one of a three-game series against the Lefties, 7-6, improving to 4-3 on the season.

From the first to eighth, the game was a one-sided affair. Sweets starting pitcher Brandon Llewellyn dealt another impressive start. The Colleyville, Texas, native went seven innings without allowing a run. He allowed just one hit and struck out four, and now is tied for the WCL lead in ERA.

For Llewellyn, who dominated with his fastball, changeup and curveball, it was great to have the crowd backing him at Borleske.

“Walla Walla fans are awesome,” Llewellyn said. “They were definitely one of the best crowds that I’ve ever pitched in front of. It was a great atmosphere and I can’t wait to do it again.”

The offense fed off the energy of the Walla Walla faithful as well. The Sweets matched their season high in hits with 11 last night, and scored the first seven runs of the game. Colin Wetterau and Connor Cirillo each posted new season highs with three hits.

The Lefties made it a close game in the top of the ninth after rallying to score six runs. Jack Holman hit a two run home run to right to make it a one-run game, but Eric Romo sealed the deal after striking out the next batter, Kai Saterstrom, to earn his second save.

The Sweets will play the Lefties again tonight at 7:05 PST.

The Sweets put on their best offensive showcase of the young 2021 season in a 9-2 victory over the AppleSox Wednesday.

The Sweets set new seasons highs in runs and hits with nine and 11, respectively. Eight different Sweets hitters got in the hit column in a balanced effort from start to finish.

The AppleSox struck first on a two-run shot to left by Adam Grob, his second home run in as many games this series. After that, however, the Sweets took over and posted nine straight runs to grab their largest win of the year.

Walla Walla posted three runs in the fourth and four in the fifth to blow things open. Cesar Lopez, Cameron Butler and Chris Conniff all picked up RBIs for the Sweets, highlighted by Lopez’s two run single in the fifth inning on a line drive to right.

The final two runs of the game came on a no-doubt, two-run home run to right from Seth Ryberg in the eighth inning. Ryberg, who had a little added motivation from friends and family in the stands, got into a 3-1 count and waited for his pitch.

“He was down 3-0, so I had an automatic take and got a fastball so I could get on time,” Ryberg said. “He happened to throw me that same fastball and I let it fly and was able to find the barrel.”

Ryberg went 2-for-5 and drove in three runs, the most by a Sweet in a game this season.

Pitching wise, starter Mason Kokodynski went 3.2 innings and allowed two runs. Travis Craven inherited a bases loaded situation and came through with a clutch strikeout to get the Sweets out of trouble.

The Sweets bullpen turned in another excellent performance. Craven, Caden Kaelber and Eric Romo combined to throw 5.1 scoreless innings while allowing just three hits and striking out seven. Kaelber struck out five hitters for the second straight appearance out the bullpen.

The Sweets conclude their three-game series in Wenatchee Thursday at 6:35 PST. You can tune in at www.mixlr.com/sweetsbaseball.

Hunter Salinas pitched five innings of shutout baseball as the Wenatchee AppleSox defeated the Sweets 5-0 Tuesday.

Salinas turned in the best outing of the year for the AppleSox thus far, striking out five hitters while allowing just three hits and one walk. Reliever Tyler Chipman threw scoreless innings before handing the ball to Chase Grillo for a scoreless ninth to complete the shutout.

The AppleSox scored two runs in the bottom of the third inning thanks to two doubles from Mark Steward and Aidan Selfridge. Selfridge, playing in his first game in Wenatchee, ripped a line drive down the left field line to plate Steward and give the AppleSox a 2-0 advantage against Sweets starter Nate Dahle.

Outside of those two doubles, Dahle looked strong on the hill. He went four innings in his first start and allowed two runs while setting the Sweets record this seasons for most strikeouts by a pitcher in a game with nine. He also showed improved control from his first relief outing, as he did not walk a batter.

Adam Growb, the shortstop for Wenatchee, delivered the decisive blow in the seventh on a no-doubt home run over the fence in left field. Tino Bethancourt singled in a run in the eight to round out the scoring for Wenatchee.

For Walla Walla, Cayden Delozier highlighted the offense. He finished 2-for-2 with two singles and two walks in his first start at first base.

“I’m seeing the ball really good right now,” Delozier said. “I wasn’t making that great of contact against the Black Bears, but I was able to get in the cages Monday and get some help from LP (Larry Price) and make some adjustments.”

The Sweets are back in action Wednesday to take on the AppleSox starting at 6:35 PST from Paul Thomas Sr. Field. You can tune in at www.mixlr.com/sweetsbaseball.

A two-run single by Jaden Sheppard propelled the Cowlitz Black Bears to a 5-4 victory over the Sweets Sunday.

Sheppard, who had just arrived in Longview, Washington, hours before the game, made an excellent first impression. Along with his go-ahead hit, he ripped a double to right center in his second at-bat.

The Black Bears got good production from the bottom third of their lineup. Cowlitz struck first on the strength of three straight singles from Torreahno Sweet, Henry Muench and Matthew Schwarz. The Black Bears scored the first three runs of the game and cashed in on their opportunities with runners in scoring position after going 1-for-17 with men on second and third Saturday.

For the Sweets, William Grimm looked impressive in his second start at first base. After throwing a scoreless inning of relief Saturday, Grimm returned to the plate Sunday and delivered two hits, including a double down the left field line as part of a three-run top of the sixth. Seth Ryberg was the only other Sweet with multiple hits, and made several terrific plays in right field including a diving catch.

Travis Craven got the start for the Sweets and forced many swings and misses. He threw five innings and allowed three runs while striking out six.

“It was good to be back on the mound after a month off,” Craven said. “I’m looking forward to the rest of the season and getting back to it consistently.”

Cowlitz starter Kyle Sandstrom and Craven combined for 12 strikeouts (six each) as it was once again a close, pitchers duel. All three games of the series were decided by one run, with just 19 total runs coming across to score in the three games.

Keegan Wright picked up the win for Cowlitz as the Black Bears moved to 1-2. The Sweets fall to 2-1 but are still tied for the North Division lead.

The Sweets are off Monday before hitting the road once again for a three-game series against the Wenatchee AppleSox. The Sweets play game one of that series Tuesday, June 8, with first set for 6:35 PST. You can tune in to the game at www.mixlr.com/sweetsbaseball.

The eighth inning was kind to the Sweets once again on Saturday, as Walla Walla picked up a 5-4 victory against the Cowlitz Black Bears.

Like Friday, game two of the series started as a pitcher’s duel. Cowlitz snuck one unearned run across in the bottom of the first, but that was all they could muster up against Sweets’ starter Brandon Llewellyn. The right-hander from Pepperdine delivered four innings and struck out seven batters.

Walla Walla’s offense got started in the fourth courtesy of Justin Folz. The Sweets third-baseman ripped a high fastball to the deepest park of the ballpark in center for a solo home run. Folz tied the game 1-1 and delivered the first home run of the year for the Sweets.

After going down 2-1 in the seventh, the Sweets responded with their best scoring inning of the year. Folz delivered a leadoff single, one of four hits for him on the night. From there, a walk and back-to-back errors gave the Sweets two runs to make it 3-2.

Following the errors, Jackson Lapiner stepped up as a pinch-hitter. The Golden West product ripped a two-run single to right to give the Sweets all the runs they’d need. Lapiner, a utility player, then took over on the mound in the bottom half of the inning and shut the door with a four-out save.

“I had some trouble with the slider, but was still able to get some swings and misses,” Lapiner said. “I trusted my fastball a lot tonight, and got it done.”

The Sweets go for the three-game sweep of the Black Bears Sunday starting at 1:05. You can listen in at www.mixlr.com/sweetsbaseball

Four different Walla Walla pitchers combined for a three-hit shoutout Friday, as the Sweets defeated the Cowlitz Black Bears, 1-0 on opening night.

Jake Dahle got the start for Walla Walla and looked impressive in four innings of work. The Dixie State commit established the zone early and showed great command, throwing 43 of his 61 pitches for strikes.

From there, second year Sweet Mason Kokodynski took over and held the Black Bears at bay. The Loyola Marymount pitcher shrugged off some early command struggles and worked his way out of two jams in two innings.

Kokodynski then handed the ball to fellow LMU teammate Logan Hurd, who struck out three batters in two innings and allowed just one baserunner via walk. Cal Poly Pomona reliever Eric Romo shut the door in the ninth to earn his first save since 2020.

Hitting wise, the Sweets did most of their work in the seventh inning. Leadoff man Seth Ryberg singled to left, and was followed by a line drive to right center field from Chris Conniff, his second hit of the night.

From there, Justin Folz took matters into his own hands. With runners at first and third, Folz ripped a first-pitch fastball to right field to score Ryberg and plate the only run of the game.

After delivering arguably the biggest hit in Sweets history in the 2019 postseason, Folz came through in the clutch yet again to start off 2021.

Conniff was the only player in the game to record multiple hits. Connor Cirillo also delivered the only extra-base hit of the evening on a pinch-hit double in the ninth. In total, the Sweets tallied seven hits.

Cowlitz was unable to produce much offensively past the third inning. The Black Bears were held hitless from the third inning on , and while they did put the tying runner on base in the eight and ninth inning via a walk and error, they could not cash in on either opportunity.

The highlight of the night for the Black Bears was starting pitcher Myles Davis. The right-hander from Feather River College delivered strong six innings of scoreless baseball, striking out six Sweets while allowing just three hits.

The Sweets and Black Bears play game two of a three-game set Saturday from Story Field in Longview, Washington. First pitch is set for 6:35, with the game available for audio stream at www.mixlr.com/sweetsbaseball.

The 2019 edition of the Walla Walla Sweets gave local fans plenty to cheer about during the franchise’s 10th season of West Coast League existence. Walla Walla commenced its season with an 8-0 start against WCL opponents, the best start in its history, achieved the franchise’s third 30-win regular season, and punched its first postseason ticket since 2013 after claiming the WCL South Division’s wild-card berth. The Sweets also garnered the franchise’s first playoff victory since 2011.

Now that we have you energized Sweets Nation, let us go forward with a rendezvous down memory lane.

Walla Walla – managed by Frank Mutz, assisted by Larry Price, Ryan Johnston, and Cameron Richman – opened 2019 by sweeping a three-game series with eventual league-champion Corvallis at Borleske Stadium by scores of 8-2, 6-3, and 5-3. Game one was tight until a five-run Sweets uprising in the bottom of the eighth inning left little doubt about the final outcome. Brock
Ephan had a pair of doubles while Patrick Caulfield, Parker Price, and Brandon Wagstaff joined him in the two-hit parade. Caulfield followed up his multiple-hit effort with four safeties in game two of the series as the Sweets survived their opponent and a pair of weather delays. David Le Bioda and Justin Folz, along with Caulfield, had two hit apiece as Walla Walla completed the season-opening sweep.

What did the Sweets do for an encore? They broomed Bend, 3-0, 9-6, and 16-11. Bryson Spagnuolo, Nick Irwin, Charles Harrison, and Reid Sebby combined on a four-hit shutout in the opener. Caulfield had two hits including a lead-off home run in the first inning and Cesar Lopez contributed two knocks and a seventh-inning RBI. Walla Walla built a 6-0 lead in the second game of the series, but had to scored three times in the bottom of the eighth to eke out a 9-6 triumph. Lopez and Folz homered, and Mason Kokodynski threw out the potential tying run at the plate in the eighth, to bring another sweep to fruition the following night.

Caulfield was named the West Coast League’s first Player of the Week after going 14-for-25 (.560 avg.) with seven stolen bases.

Following a pair of non-league wins at home over the Highline Bears to complete a spotless homestand, the Sweets ventured to Wenatchee for a three-game series with the soon-to-be, playoff-bound AppleSox over Father’s Day weekend. The series opener was highlighted by a two-out, two-run home run by Carson Green in the ninth inning that was the difference in a 3-1 Walla Walla win. The Sweets won game two of the set to improve to 8-0 in the WCL, but dropped the finale, 11-10, despite a 7-0 lead after two-and-a-half innings of play.

Walla Walla returned home for six-games at Borleske Stadium and registered series wins over Portland and Port Angeles. Big blows during this Borleske stay were a three-run homer by Caulfield in the series opener with Portland and a ninth-inning, walk-off bomb by Chazz Martinez in the middle game of the Port Angeles series, won by the home team by a 9-8 tally.

The Sweets went 3-3 on their first six-game road trip that closed out the month of June. Walla Walla dropped the first two games in Bend, 4-2 and 2-1, but rebounded for an 8-3 triumph in the series finale. Martinez started a five-run rally in the sixth inning of the latter battle with a home run. Walla Walla carried that momentum to Ridgefield and won the first two games of that set, 5-2 and 13-9, before dropping the last game of the series 6-3. Pitchers Landon Boeneke, Ty Hueckman, and Irwin teamed up to blank the Raptors on four hits over the first seven innings in the opener while Caulfield set the tone for a four-hit performance and a wild game two with a homer to lead off the matchup.

July started with a three-game home series against the Cowlitz Black Bears. The Sweets clobbered Cowlitz, 13-4, in the opener, dropped a heartbreaking 7-6 decision in the middle game of the series, then celebrated the Fourth of July with a 6-4 conquest. Ben Fariss capped a five-RBI night and Walla Walla’s scoring in game one with a grand-slam home run and Caleb Farmer keyed a four-run, sixth-inning rally on Independence Day with a two-run triple.

Walla Walla traveled north the first weekend of the month and dropped two out of three games to Kelowna to end the first half of league play with an 18-9 record. The Sweets did win the north-of-the-border finale, 6-3, thanks in part to a couple of RBI each from Michael Petrie and Connor Cirillo. It split two games in Bellingham, losing the opener 4-1 and taking the next outing, 11-7. The Sweets, who got three RBI from Martinez – including a two-run bomb in the second inning – and two runs batted in from Lopez, scored all of their runs in the victory over the Bells with two out.

Disappointment was the order of the week after non-league games with the Military All-Stars and Cascade Collegiate League. Walla Walla lost two of three games against Victoria, including a 19-inning marathon, and suffered a road sweep in Corvallis before heading into the All-Star Break.

Caulfield, Folz, and pitchers Travis Craven and Sebby,  represented the Sweets in the WCL’s version of the mid-summer classic.

Walla Walla resumed league play with a series win over Wenatchee at Borleske Stadium. The shining light was provided by Johnston, who no-hit the AppleSox for six-and-a-third innings in game two of the series, won by the good guys 3-2. He ended up with six-and-two-thirds innings worked, allowed just one run and one hit, and struck out eight. Lopez, Martinez, and Le Bioda backed up Johnston with an RBI apiece in the first inning. Ephan contributed a two-RBI double as the final piece of a four-run seventh inning in the series’ initial act.

The Sweets won three and lost three on their final six-game adventure away from Borleske Stadium that took them to Cowlitz and Portland, closed out the month of July, and spilled into August. Walla Walla got the big bats out against the Black Bears and scored 12 runs in each of the final two games of the series at Story Field on the Lower Columbia College campus in Longview, games that ended with desired results by 12-2 and 12-6 counts. Ephan had two hits in both of those games. Brayde Hirai and Boeneke allowed just one run apiece in the middle game. Ephan collected two more hits and a sacrifice fly in a July 31 win at Portland.

Walla Walla ended the home segment of its 2019 schedule with a 4-and-2 showing. Big moments spotlighted were a come-from-behind victory over Ridgefield and a post-season clinching conquest of Kelowna. Bryce Vitt hit a three-run double and Emanuel Dean singled him in as the Sweets rallied from a three-run, ninth-inning deficit to top the Raptors, 8-7. Hirai, Hueckman, Jake Dahle, and Sebby combined on a three-hitter in a 4-0 victory over the Falcons that helped Walla Walla secure its postseason ticket.

Ephan earned WCL Player of the Week honors by going 10-for-25 in Sweets games July 29-Aug. 4. He hit two home runs, drove in 11, and scored seven times.

The Sweets claimed win No. 30 of the season Aug. 10 with an 11-5 trouncing of Yakima Valley. Caulfield and Craven set all-time league records during the game. Craven tossed the first inning-and-a-third in his 13th start of 2019 and Caulfield stole his 41st base of the season in the sixth inning. Green clobbered a three-run home run in the third inning that put the Sweets up, 5-0. Craven, Boeneke, and Nate Dahle skunked the Pippins through the first seven frames.

Caulfield ended the regular season as the league’s seventh-leading hitter (.328) and Lopez was the third most prolific producer of runs batted in (39). Craven was 1-2 with a 1.99 earned run average. He threw 40.2 innings, allowed 30 hits, 11 runs, nine earned, walked 15 and struck out 41. Teammates Hueckman and Boeneke were part of a second-place log jam in the WCL with five wins.

The Sweets dropped the WCL South Division Series opener to the Knights, 6-3, at Borleske Stadium before keeping their season afloat with a dramatic game-two victory at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. Caulfield tied the game in the ninth with a single and, one out and an intentional walk later, Folz towered a grand-slam home run to right field to shatter a 4-4 tie. Hirai capped the six-run blitz with an RBI single, then retired the Knights in order in the last of the ninth.

Walla Walla’s aspirations of reaching the WCL championships series ended the following evening after a 6-2 setback in the rubber game of the series.

Six Sweets received all-West Coast League recognition. Caulfield was named to the first team and Craven to the second team. Honorable-mention status went to Hirai, Lopez, Ephan, and Sebby.

Despite the hard-to-swallow ending, no one can doubt that this patch of Walla Walla Sweets produced memories that local baseball fans will remember for a long time and get them fired up for 2020. It will be here before you know it – perhaps another summer to remember.

A successful 2019 season that was highlighted by 31 wins – including an exciting playoff victory over the three-time defending West Coast League champion Corvallis Knights – came to a disappointing end for the Walla Walla Sweets on Thursday night.

Corvallis brought the Sweets season to a close with a 6-2 victory in game three of the WCL’s South Division Playoff Series at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field.

The Knights will face the Victoria HarbourCats in the West Coast League Championship Series.

Walla Walla’s regular-season record was 30-23. It ended the summer, with non-league and postseason games factored in, at 36-25.

Corvallis scored an unearned run in the second inning to break a scoreless tie. Michael Curialle led off with a walk and Nick Yovetich lifted a fly ball into the right-center field alley that was destined to drop for an extra-base hit, and would have had it not been for a diving, highlight-reel catch by centerfielder Patrick Caulfield. Walla Walla starting pitcher Landon Boeneke struck out Trace Tammaro for the second out of the inning, but Jake Harvey reached on a two-base error to keep the inning going. Jake Holcroft singled in Curialle to give the Knights a 1-0 edge.

Boeneke retired Corvallis 1-2-3 in the third inning before allowing another unearned run in the fourth. A lead-off error allowed Curialle to take first. One out later, Tammaro doubled Curialle home to double the Knights’ lead to 2-0.

The Sweets managed just one hit through the first five innings against Corvallis starter Connor Redmond. But that changed in the sixth when Carson Green belted Redmond’s first offering to left for a home run that cut the Knights’ advantage to 2-1.

A sixth-inning fielder’s choice got Corvallis back up by two, 3-1.

Caulfield started the seventh with a bouncer that Knights’ third baseman Andy Atwood mishandled for an error. He was balked to second, stole third, and scored on a two-out hit struck by Emanuel Dean.

Briley Knight started the home seventh with a bunt single against Sweets reliever Brennan Patterson. Two outs later, Patterson walked Curialle on a borderline 3-2 pitch, then went 3-2 on Yovetich before allowing a three-run home run to right.

Walla Walla sent up the minimum number of hitters in both the eighth and ninth innings, and was unable to kick up its rally heels in either frame.

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There’s Always Next Season

Photography by Hutson Photography

Justin Folz towered a two-out, grand-slam home run to highlight a six-run, ninth-inning rally Wednesday night to lift the Walla Walla Sweets to a 9-4 victory over the Corvallis Knights in game two of the West Coast League South Division Playoff Series at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field.

The stunning comeback evened the best-of-three set at one game apiece and sets up a third and series-deciding contest Thursday night in Corvallis.

Brayde Hirai led off the game-deciding frame with a walk against Corvallis closer Connor Knutson – who pitched a 1-2-3 ninth Tuesday night in the Knights’ series-opening 6-3 triumph. One out later, Hirai advanced to second on a wild pitch and Parker Price walked. Patrick Caulfield bounced a single into left field that brought Hirai in with the tying run. With two out, Chazz Martinez was intentionally walked to set the stage for Folz’s magic moment. Folz worked Knutson for a full count. After fouling off the next three pitches, including a delivery that was lined down the right-field line that was ruled outside of fair territory, Folz took Knutson’s next offering over the right-field wall that sent the Sweets dugout into a state of exuberance and stunned an announced crowd of 1,065.

Emanuel Dean kept things rolling with a double, Carson Green was hit by a pitch, and Hirai singled in Dean.

The Sweets scored first in the opening frame of the game. Caulfield singled with two out and scored when Bryce Vitt slit the left-center field alley with a double.

Corvallis scored three times in the third inning. Jake Harvey got the Knights on the board with a two-run triple and Andy Atwood followed with an RBI single.

The home team added another run in the fourth. Michael Curialle doubled with one out and Jake Harvey two-bagged him in with two out.

Caulfield, Vitt, and Martinez slapped consecutive singles to start the sixth inning. The latter hit produced a run. Folz brought the Sweets one run closer with a sacrifice fly.

Hirai threw five scoreless innings in relief of starter Ryan Johnston to keep Walla Walla within reach. He gave up two hits, two walks, and struck out five and retired nine of the last 12 hitters to face him.

Wednesday’s victory was Walla Walla’s first this season when trailing after seven and eight innings. Prior to the win, the Sweets were 0-14 when behind after seven innings and 0-17 when down after eight.

The home loss was just the fifth this season for Corvallis in 28 games at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field.

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Photography by Hutson Photography

A pair of two-out swings were the difference Tuesday night as the Walla Walla Sweets opened their best-of-three West Coast League South Division Playoff Series with a 6-3 loss to the three-time defending champion Corvallis Knights at Borleske Stadium.

A single by Jake Holcroft and a home run off the bat of Jake Harvey helped doom Walla Walla’s chances.

Holcroft, who had three hits in the game, led off the first inning with a double in the left-center field gap off of Sweets starter Travis Craven. Andy Atwood drove Holcroft in with a single to center.

Craven settled down after the early misfortune. He struck out Briley Knight, Brooks Lee flied to center, and Zack Moeller skied to right.

The Sweets were retired 1-2-3 in the bottom of the first by Knights’ starter Tevita Gerber, but not without controversy. Parker Price bunted down the first base line with one out and reached base safely when Gerber’s feed to first baseman Trace Tammaro struck Price. But Price was ruled out for runner interference – a judgement that was not well received by Price, his teammates, or Sweets fans in attendance.

Matthew Gretler survived a border-line, 2-2 pitch from Craven and drew a lead-off walk in the second inning. Michael Curialle reached base on an error and, following a strikeout of Tammaro and a fly to center by Harvey, Holcroft dunked a two-run single to center to give the Knights a 3-0 lead.

Craven retired seven of the next eight hitters he faced and the Sweets responded with a run in the fourth inning. Price doubled to lead off and scored on a two-out, two-bagger by Caleb Farmer that cut the deficit to two, 3-1.

The Knights got their final run off Craven in the fifth on a Knight sacrifice fly.

Ty Hueckman relieved Craven in the sixth. Gretler flew to center and Curialle grounded to shortstop. But Tammaro singled and Jake Harvey homered to left to make it 6-1. Hueckman fanned Holcroft to end the sixth, and tossed a perfect seventh.

Farmer walked with one out in the Walla Walla seventh. One out later, Gerber was replaced by William Kempner – who surrendered an RBI triple to Chazz Martinez and a run-scoring hit to Carson Green.

Right-hander Jake Dahle replaced Hueckman with runners at first and second and one out in the eighth inning. Tammaro hit into a 4-6 fielder’s choice and Harvey lined back to the mound for out No. 3.

Jake Dahle issued back-to-back walks with one out in the ninth, but flies to left by Lee and center by Moeller ended the threat.

Game two of the series is Wednesday night at 6:40 at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field.

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Making Plays

Teammates 

Eyes On The Prize

Community

In For A Battle

Swinging for It

Boys of Summer

Photography by Hutson Photography

After finishing the 2019 regular season with the franchise’s third 30-win campaign, and first since a 2013 playoff run, the Walla Walla Sweets (30-23) open a best-of-three West Coast League South Division Playoff Series against three-time defending champion Corvallis (42-12) Tuesday night at 6:35 inside historic Borleske Stadium.

Game two of the series is Wednesday night at 6:40 at Oregon State University’s Goss Stadium at Coleman Field. If a third game is necessary, it would be played in Corvallis on Thursday night at 6:40.

The Sweets, making the franchise’s third postseason appearance (2012 and 2013), achieved win No. 30 on the road Saturday night with an 11-5 trouncing of Yakima Valley. Centerfielder Patrick Caulfield and pitcher Travis Craven set all-time league records during the game. Craven tossed the first inning-and-a-third in his 13th start of 2019 and Caulfield stole his 41st base of the season in the sixth inning.

Walla Walla began its season with the best start in franchise history. The Sweets opened 2019 by sweeping a three-game series with the Knights at Borleske Stadium by scores of 8-2, 6-3, and 5-3. They followed that up by brooming Bend, 3-0, 9-6, and 16-11. Caulfield was named the West Coast League’s first Player of the Week after going 14-for-25 (.560 avg.) with seven stolen bases in the half-dozen contests.

Following a pair of non-league wins at home over the Highline Bears to complete a spotless season-opening homestand, the Sweets traveled to Wenatchee for a three-game series with the playoff-bound AppleSox over Father’s Day weekend. The series opener was highlighted by a two-out, two-run home run by Carson Green in the ninth inning that was the difference in a 3-1 Walla Walla win. The Sweets won game two of the set to improve to 8-0 in the WCL, but dropped the finale.

Walla Walla returned home for a six-game homestand and registered series wins over Portland and Port Angeles. Big blows during this Borleske stay were a three-run homer by Caulfield in the series opener with Portland and a ninth-inning, walk-off bomb by Chazz Martinez in the middle game of the Port Angeles series, won by the home team by a 9-8 count.

The Sweets went 3-3 on their first six-game road trip that closed out the month of June. Walla Walla dropped the first two games in Bend, 4-2 and 2-1, but rebounded for an 8-3 triumph in the series finale. It carried that momentum to Ridgefield and won the first two games of that set, 5-2 and 13-9, before dropping the last game of the series 6-3.

July started with a three-game home series with the Cowlitz Black Bears. The Sweets clobbered Cowlitz, 13-4, in the opener, dropped a heartbreaking 7-6 decision in the middle game of the series, then celebrated the Fourth of July with a 6-4 conquest.

Walla Walla traveled north the first weekend of the month and dropped two out of three games to Kelowna to end the first half of league play with an 18-9 record. The Sweets did win the north-of-the-border finale, 6-3, then split two games in Bellingham, losing the opener 4-1 and taking the next outing, 11-7. The Sweets scored all of their runs in the victory over the Bells with two out.

Disappointment was the order of the week after non-league games with the Military All-Stars and Cascade Collegiate League. Walla Walla lost two of three games against Victoria, including a 19-inning marathon, and suffered a road sweep in Corvallis before heading into the All-Star Break.

Caulfield, infielder Justin Folz, and pitchers Craven and Reid Sebby represented the Sweets in the WCL’s version of the mid-summer classic.

Walla Walla resumed league play with a series win over Wenatchee at Borleske Stadium. The big highlight was provided by utility specialist Ryan Johnston, who no-hit the AppleSox for six-and-a-third innings in game two of the series. He ended up with six-and-two-thirds innings worked, allowed just one run and one hit, and struck out eight.

The Sweets won three and lost three on their final six-game adventure away from Borleske Stadium that took them to Cowlitz and Portland, closed out the month of July, and spilled into August. Walla Walla got the big bats out against the Black Bears and scored 12 runs in each of the final two games of the series at Story Field on the Lower Columbia College campus in Longview.

Walla Walla ended the home portion of its 2019 schedule with a 4-2 homestand. Highlights included a come-from-behind victory over Ridgefield and a post-season clinching win over Kelowna. Bryce Vitt hit a three-run double and Emanuel Dean singled him in as the Sweets rallied from a three-run, ninth-inning deficit to top the Raptors, 8-7. Brayde Hirai, Ty Hueckman, Jake Dahle, and Sebby combined on a three-hitter in a 4-0 victory over the Falcons that helped Walla Walla punch its postseason ticket.

Brock Ephan earned WCL Player of the Week honors by going 10-for-25 in Sweets games July 29-Aug. 4. He hit two home runs, drove in 11, and scored seven times.

Caulfield ended the regular season as the league’s seventh-leading hitter (.328) and Cesar Lopez was the third most prolific producer of runs batted in (39). Craven was 1-2 with a 1.99 earned run average. He threw 40.2 innings, allowed 30 hits, 11 runs, nine earned, walked 15 and struck out 41. Teammates Hueckman and Landon Boeneke were part of a log jam for second in the WCL with five wins.

Corvallis, which finished both the first and second half of the WCL season atop the South Division, did so with identical 21-6 records. The Knights enter the postseason with the league’s top three hitters – Jake Holcroft (.368), Briley Knight (.357), and Brooks Lee (.342). Knight tied for second in the WCL with eight home runs and was second in the regular season with 42 RBI. Holcroft ranked fifth with 33 runs batted in.

Southpaw Tevita Gerber has enjoyed a stellar summer for the Knights. He leads the WCL in wins with seven and has a 7-1 record with a 2.20 earned run average. Right-handed pitchers David Watson and Jackson Arnsdorf, like Hueckman and Boeneke, were among a handful of hurlers that won five games this season. Watston was 5-1 with a 4.02 ERA and Arnsdorf finished with an identical record and a 1.70 ERA.

Eddy Pelc hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the 15th inning Sunday night to lift the Yakima Valley Pippins to a 6-3 victory over the Walla Walla Sweets in the West Coast League regular-season finale for both teams.

The Sweets ended the second half of WCL play 12-14 and finished 30-23 overall.

Walla Walla will host three-time defending champion Corvallis for game one of a best-of-three WCL South Division playoff series Tuesday night at Borleske Stadium. First pitch is at 6:35.

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Yakima Valley scored the first run of Sunday’s game in the initial frame against Sweets starter Turner Edwards, who was making his Walla Walla debut. Edwards walked five of the first six hitters he faced, but gave up just the one run.

The Sweets evened the score in the top of the second. Carson Green led off with a single. He stole second, then moved to third on a throwing error by Pippins’ catcher James Bell. Zac Berryman laid down a bunt down first-base way to score Green and knot the score at 1-1.

Edwards pitched a 1-2-3 bottom of the second and got out of a first-and-second, no-out jam in the third inning. But a two-run double in the fourth by Aidan Welch brought an end to his evening. Mason Kokodynski replaced Edwards and got Tanner Parker to fly out to center field for the first out of the inning. Welch tried to move from second to third on the play, but Chazz Martinez unleashed a no-hop throw to Green to cut down the Yakima Valley runner.

Emanuel Dean led off the fifth inning with a double and went to third on a Justin Folz single. Folz got himself into a pickle between first and second, but first baseman Tyler Dean made an errant throw to second that struck Folz and allowed Dean to score.

Kokodynski put up zeros in the fifth and sixth innings while Brennan Patterson followed suit in innings seven and eight.

Walla Walla tied the game in the ninth. Patrick Caulfield led off with a double and went to third on a 3-4 sacrifice by Kokodynski. Folz lifted the first pitch he saw from Pippins’ reliever Nick Brown to center for a sacrifice fly to plate Caulfield.

Brayde Hirai, Parker Price, and Green teamed up to throw no-hit ball from the ninth through 14th innings.

Cesar Lopez surrendered a walk and a hit by pitch prior to Pelc’s poke over the right-field wall.

The all-time, regular-season series between the two teams is tied at 18 wins apiece.

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The Walla Walla Sweets scored twice in the first inning, three times in the third inning, and five more times in the sixth inning Saturday night on their way to an 11-5 victory over the Yakima Valley Pippins in West Coast League baseball action at Yakima County Stadium.

Saturday’s game will be remembered by Sweets Nation for more than runs, hits, and errors. It was a night in which the 2019 Walla Walla nine achieved the franchise’s third 30-win season and both Travis Craven and Patrick Caulfield made their way into the WCL record book.

Ryan Johnston led off the first inning with a double and scored two outs later on a two-bagger by Cesar Lopez – who crossed home after consecutive walks to Caleb Farmer, Bryce Vitt, and Turner Edwards.

Historic moment No. 1 occurred when Craven took the mound for his 13th start of the season, a WCL record, and commemorated the occasion with an inning-and-a-third of scoreless baseball.

The Sweets provided more two-out magic in the third inning. Vitt and Chazz Martinez both singled and tallied when Carson Green homered to left field. The round tripper was Green’s second of the season. He hit a game-winning, two-run dinger in the ninth inning at Wenatchee on June 14.

Reliever Landon Boeneke followed Craven with two-and-two-thirds innings of two-hit ball and got some defensive help in the fourth inning. The Pippins’ Kyle Dean led off with a hit to left-center. Johnston cut it off before throwing a strike to second baseman Justin Folz to deny Dean’s bid for a double.

Sweets right-hander Nate Dahle walked three of the first four hitters he saw in the fifth inning, but retired the final two to escape unscathed.

Historic moment No. 2 came in a five-run sixth inning. Folz doubled, Johnston walked,  and Parker Price legged out a bunt base hit. Caulfield scored two with a single and Lopez produced an RBI single. Lopez got in a pickle between first and second after Caulfield took a stride toward third. Caulfield advanced to third and Lopez managed to get back to first. Caulfield was credited with a stolen base, his WCL record-setting 41st of 2019. One out later, Vitt walked and Martinez scored Caulfield with a fielder’s choice. The last run was the result of a Yakima Valley error.

The Pippins scored five times in the eighth inning before Parker Price single handedly produced a run in the ninth. He singled, stole second, went to third on an error, and scored on a passed ball.

Lefty Brayde Hirai threw a 1-2-3 ninth to end the game.

The final game of the series, and regular season, starts Sunday night at 7:05.

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Patrick Caulfield after breaking the all-time WCL Stolen Base Record

The Walla Walla Sweets blew a two-run, eighth-inning lead Friday night and dropped the opening game of a three-game West Coast League baseball series to the Yakima Valley Pippins in 10 innings, 6-5, at Yakima County Stadium.

The Pippins, who were in the midst of an eight-game losing streak entering the game, scored twice in the eighth inning and once more in the 10th to eke out the win.

Walla Walla, which came up short in its bid for its 30th league win of the season despite four hits apiece from Cesar Lopez and Justin Folz, is now 11-13 in the second half of WCL play and 29-22 overall.

The Sweets scored twice in the top of the first inning. Ryan Johnston led off with a single and Parker Price walked. Patrick  Caulfield hit a high chopper to shortstop to move the runners up and Lopez brought them in with a single off the right-field wall.

The Pippins scored three times on as many hits in the bottom of the first.

Walla Walla evened the score in the second inning. Emanuel Dean walked and Folz singled. Johnston and Price walked back-to-back to bring in pinch-runner Mason Kokodynski.

Sweets starting pitcher Nick Irwin shook off the first inning and ended his stint with three-and-two-thirds frames of scoreless ball and retired 10 of the last 13 hitters he faced.

The Sweets threatened, but did not score, in the fifth inning despite a pair of stolen bases by Caulfield, who raised his WCL-leading total to 40 – a number achieved only one other time in league history.

Reliever Dimick Wood shook off a lead-off walk in the fifth and set down the next six to bat against him and struck out three.

Prior to Wood’s three-up, three-down routine in the home sixth, the Sweets grabbed the lead back in the top of the sixth. Chazz Martinez doubled and went to third on a Kokodynski single. Folz followed with a double in the right-center alley that plated both Martinez and Kokodynski with Walla Walla’s final runs of the game.

Lopez’s offensive effort was his team-leading 20th multi-hit game of the season. It’s the seventh time he has collected three or more hits in a 2019 contest and the third time he has ended a productive night at the plate with four knocks.

The Sweets outhit Yakima Valley 13-12, but stranded 11 runners on the base paths. Walla Walla left the bases loaded in both the second and eighth innings.

Game two of the three-game series is Saturday night at 6:35.

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The Walla Walla Sweets, fresh off clinching the third West Coast League playoff berth in franchise history, conclude the 2019 regular season this weekend with a three-game road series against the Yakima Valley Pippins (8-17 in the WCL’s second half, 19-32 overall).

Games will be played at 6:35 p.m. on both Friday and Saturday, and 7:05 p.m. on Sunday at Yakima County Stadium.

Walla Walla (11-12, 29-21) finished off a 4-and-2 homestand, its last of the regular season, and a stretch of 15 games in as many days on Wednesday night by completing a three-game sweep of the Kelowna Falcons, 4-0, at Borleske Stadium – the team’s first shutout since a 3-0 home blanking of Bend on June 7. The Sweets downed their north-of-the-border rival 10-2 on Tuesday and opened the series Aug. 2 with a 6-2 triumph. A series setback -two losses to one against Ridgefield – was wedged between the Friday and Tuesday contests with Kelowna. Walla Walla’s lone win versus the Raptors occurred on Sunday night when the Sweets rose from oblivion to score four runs in the bottom of the ninth inning for an 8-7 conquest.

Walla Walla pitchers Brayde Hirai, Ty Hueckman, Jake Dahle, and Reid Sebby teamed up to foil the Falcons on three hits and strike out 15 Wednesday night. Kelowna had just one runner get as far as third in the game. The Sweets managed just three hits themselves, but two proved to be productive – a one-out home run by Ryan Johnston in the fifth inning and a sixth-inning RBI single by Caleb Farmer. Walla Walla also employed opportunism and little ball. Parker Price and Patrick Caulfield walked in the first inning, executed a double steal, and Price scored on an error. Caulfield walked to lead off the sixth, stole second, Cesar Lopez accepted a free pass and, after a double theft, Bryce Vitt grounded to shortstop to score Caulfield, who enters the final weekend of regular-season play with a league-leading 38 stolen bases.

The Sweets banged out 14 hits on Tuesday. Justin Folz set the pace with three while Lopez, Vitt, Chazz Martinez, and Emanuel Dean socked two hits apiece. Dean had three runs batted in, Vitt and Price contributed two each, and Lopez, Martinez, and Folz chipped in one RBI apiece.

Vitt belted a three-run double and Dean singled him home in the last of the ninth inning on Sunday in Walla Walla’s come-from-behind effort – its second walk-off win of the season.

Hueckman, Nate Dahle, and Spencer Schwehr fashioned nine innings of five-hit, 11-strikeout ball in the homestand opener. Martinez started the scoring in a five-run second inning with a two-RBI single and Dean tattooed a three-run homer. Price delivered an RBI knock in the fourth.

Caulfield comes into the weekend sixth in the WCL with a .331 batting average. Lopez is third in RBI with 35 – only trailing Ridgefield’s Michael Hicks (42) and Briley Knight of Corvallis (40). Hueckman is tied for second in wins (5) with Bellingham’s Nick Proctor and Jackson Arnsdorf of Corvallis, and is fourth in earned run average (2.90).

Yakima Valley enters its final homestand of 2019 smarting after three tough losses at Cowlitz – 2-0 on Tuesday, 5-4 Wednesday, and 3-1 on Thursday. Eddie Pelc, Brian Rice, and Brady Hormel had two hits apiece on Thursday. Pitchers Mark Woinarowicz and A.J. Wood tossed in relief on Thursday and kept the Pippins close by skunking the Black Bears over the final seven-and-two-third innings.

Pippins’ pitchers Joe Magrisi and Jack Gonzales have distinguished themselves as tough customers this summer. Magrisi leads the West Coast League with 66 strikeouts and Gonzales ranks sixth with a 3.62 ERA.

It’s a feeling Walla Walla Sweets Nation has not experienced since 2013.

In 2019, the feeling of West Coast League playoff baseball is real.

This year’s edition of the Sweets – a group that time and time again has displayed its share of unity, closeness, and togetherness – brought the postseason possibility to fruition Wednesday with a 4-0, wild-card clinching victory over the Kelowna Falcons on Fan Appreciation Night at Borleske Stadium.

The Sweets will face three-time defending WCL champion Corvallis next week in a best-of-three series which begins Tuesday night at Borleske Stadium. Game time is 6:35. Tickets for the game will go on sale on Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Sweet Shoppe on East Main in downtown Walla Walla. Season ticket holders received an e-mail Wednesday night with details on how to secure their seats. Tickets will be available at the Sweet Shoppe, by calling 509-522-BALL(2255), or online at wallawallasweets.com.

Sweets Parker Price and Patrick Caulfield started the bottom of the first inning of Wednesday’s game with walks. They executed a double steal moments later, and Price scored on a throwing error by Kelowna catcher Ben Smith.

Walla Walla starting pitcher Brayde Hirai struck out the side in the first inning and retired the first eight hitters he faced. He allowed just one hit and fanned four over his three-inning stint.

It looked like the Falcons would break into the scoring column against right-hander Ty Hueckman in the fourth when Brandon Hupe drove a ball into the left-center field gap with a runner at first and two out. But Caulfield got a good jump on Hupe’s smash and ran it down to end the inning.

Hueckman kept the shutout intact despite giving up a hit and a walk in the fifth inning. He fanned the side in the frame.

Ryan Johnston hit his second home run of the season, a one-out solo shot to left, in the last of the fifth.

Caulfield and Cesar Lopez started the sixth with walks. Caulfield stole second prior to Lopez’s free pass, and later nabbed his league-leading 38th steal while Lopez took second. Bryce Vitt scored Caulfield with a grounder to short and Caleb Farmer hit Lopez in.

Jake Dahle threw two innings of no-run ball in the sixth and seventh, and struck out three in the latter inning.

Reid Sebby tossed a perfect eighth with two K’s and struck out the first two hitters in the ninth. The Falcons got the next two batters aboard before Sebby fanned Andy Schmitz looking to end the game.

Walla Walla, which completed its first series sweep since early June and posted its first shutout since a 3-0 win over Bend on June 7, improved to 11-12 in the second half of West Coast League play and 29-21 overall.

POST GAME WITH THE WALLA WALLA SWEETS

The Sweets open a three-game series at Yakima Valley beginning Friday at 6:35 p.m.

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Sideline

In It To Win It

Slidn’ In

Contact Hitting

Stealing Bases

Swinging For The Fences

Photography by Hutson Photography

The Walla Walla Sweets scored twice in the bottom of the fourth inning and seven more times in the fifth inning Tuesday night on their way to a 10-2 victory over the Kelowna Falcons in West Coast League baseball action at Borleske Stadium.

Walla Walla, which has scored five or more runs in eight of its last 10 games, improved to 10-12 in the second half of WCL play and 28-21 overall.

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The Sweets tallied first in Tuesday’s tilt. Cesar Lopez singled with two out in the first inning and Bryce Vitt blasted a 3-2 pitch from Falcons’ starting pitcher Matt Voelzke into deep right-center field for an RBI triple.

Kelowna’s Lane Hailey tied the game up in the fourth with a run-scoring single.

Walla Walla regained the lead in the bottom of the fourth. Vitt reached base on an error and scored on a double down the left-field line by Chazz Martinez. Justin Folz moved Martinez to third with a grounder to second, and Emanuel Dean brought him in with a base knock.

Sweets starter Ryan Johnston allowed just one run over four innings. He struck out the side on nine pitches in the first inning and ended up with four K’s and one walk.

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A bunt base hit by Patrick Caulfield started the fun in the bottom of the fifth after reliever Mason Kokodynski retired the side in order in the top of the fifth. Caulfield stole second and Lopez walked. The two then moved up 90 feet apiece by way of the steal, and Vitt lifted a shallow fly ball to left that scored Caulfield after outfielder Andy Schmitz lost it in the sky. Martinez walked to fill the bases and Folz drove in a run with an infield single. Dean slapped a two-run single into right-center, and Parker Price and Lopez scored the final three runs of the inning with a two-run single and fielder’s choice, respectively.

Kokodynski gave up a run on two hits during innings six and seven. Nate Dahle struck out four and walked two over the final two frames of the game.

In all, Johnston, Kokodynski, and Nate Dahle combined for 11 strikeouts.

The final game of the three-game series and regular-season-ending, six-game homestand is Wednesday night at 7:05.

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The Ridgefield Raptors scored in all but one inning Monday night and cruised to a 17-3 victory over the Walla Walla Sweets in West Coast League baseball action at Borleske Stadium.

Walla Walla is now 9-12 in the WCL’s second half and 27-21 overall.

Ridgefield started the scoring with a tally in the first inning and added two more in the second.

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Innings two and three summed up the night for the Sweets. Caleb Farmer singled with one out in inning two, Chazz Martinez walked, and Justin Folz singled to load the bases. Emanuel Dean hit a line drive, but right at Johnny Weaver, Ridgefield’s shortstop. Weaver then  flipped the ball to middle-infield mate Wyatt Hoffman to double Martinez off of second base.

The Sweets had another chance in the bottom of the third after Ridgefield scored twice in the top half of the inning. Johnston was hit by a pitch and Patrick Caulfield hit a seed back to the mound that struck the foot of Raptors’ starting pitcher Hayden Minich and ricocheted to Weaver. A feed to Hoffman and throw to first later and a rare 1-6-4-3 double play was completed.

Five more runs in the fourth brought the Ridgefield lead to 10-0.

Farmer unloaded on a 1-2 pitch from Minich in the fourth inning and lifted it over the left-field wall to get the home team on the board.

The Raptors scored single runs in the sixth and seventh innings before the Sweets scored twice in the bottom of inning seven. Zac Berryman reached on an error, Martinez singled and, one out later, Dean doubled in Berryman. Martinez crossed the plate on a grounder to short off the bat of Carson Green.

The Raptors ended the night with four runs in the eighth inning and one more in the ninth.

The Sweets resume a three-game series with Kelowna, which started last Friday, on Tuesday night at 6:35.

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All appeared lost for the Walla Walla Sweets during West Coast League baseball action Sunday night at Borleske Stadium.

Visiting Ridgefield scored three tie-breaking runs in the top of the ninth inning to take a 7-4 lead.

The Raptors were three outs away from securing their second win in as many nights against the home nine.

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But Sweets Bryce Vitt and Emanuel Dean collectively authored a seemingly unthinkable ending in the bottom of the ninth.

Vitt blasted a three-run, game-tying double and Dean singled him in two pitches later to give Walla Walla a stunning 8-7 victory.

The win improved the Sweets second-half record to 9-11 and overall mark to 27-20.

Ridgefield’s Michael Hicks knocked in the first run of the game with a one-out, third-inning single.

Walla Walla responded with an ace in the home third. Ryan Johnston singled with one out and raced to third on a Patrick Caulfield double. Cesar Lopez followed with an infield hit that scored Johnston.

Zac Berryman was hit by a pitch to start the last half of inning four. Vitt walked, and Connor Cirillo moved the runners up with a bouncer to third. Johnston lined a single that brought both Berryman and Vitt home and gave the Sweets a 3-1 lead.

The Raptors’ Grayson Sterling tied things up with a two-out, two-RBI double in the fifth and Jack Bauer gave Ridgefield a 4-3 edge in the sixth with a sacrifice fly to center field.

Vitt gutted out a base on balls in the bottom of the sixth and advanced to third on a Cirillo two-bagger. Johnston scored Vitt with a bouncing ball to shortstop.

Sweets reliever Jake Dahle and Ridgefield’s Drake Estes shut out their respective opponents in both the seventh and eighth innings.

But in the ninth, Jake Dahle allowed a two-out, two-run single to Michael Yourg and Willie Cano singled for a run against Nick Irwin to give the Raptors what appeared to be an insurmountable 7-4 lead. Irwin, a.k.a. Bones, struck out Dominic Enbody to end the inning.

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Cameron Repetti, who set the Sweets down 1-2-3 in the ninth inning Saturday night to earn the save in a 9-8 Ridgefield triumph, walked Brock Ephan to start Sunday’s last of the ninth. Pinch-runner Connor Lemma went to third following back-to-back singles by Caleb Farmer and Chazz Martinez. One out later, Vitt towered a Repetti pitch into the right-center alley that tied the game at 7-7. Vitt hustled to third on the play on an errant throw home by Raptors’ second baseman Wyatt Hoffman.

“I just saw a slider out of his hand and drove it the other way,” Vitt said. “I haven’t hit a ball like that all summer.”

Dean decided the outcome on a 1-0 pitch that he bounced through the box and into center.

“I prayed to God and asked Him to help me out,” Dean said. “It (the pitch) was a fastball and I gave it my best swing. Credit (for the potential game-winning moment) should go to Bryce.”

“I knew we weren’t out of it,” Vitt said. “L.P. (Larry Price, assistant coach) said ‘We’re scoring four.’ We just came out firing.”

POST GAME INTERVIEW WITH BRYCE VITT

The rubber game of the three-game series is Monday night at 6:35.

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Game Winning Hit

Coming Home

Realizing That You Just Did That

Celebration

Photography by Hutson Photography

A ninth-inning, RBI single by Michael Yourg was the difference Saturday night as the Ridgefield Raptors nipped the Walla Walla Sweets, 9-8, in the opening game of a three-game West Coast League baseball series at Borleske Stadium.

The tough loss dropped the Sweets to 8-11 in the second half of WCL action and 26-20 overall.

Ridgefield’s Jonny Weaver opened the game with a lead-off walk against Sweets starting pitcher Brayde Hirai. Jack Bauer followed with a fly ball down the right-field line that was ruled a home run. Video and photographic evidence later revealed that Bauer’s fly in fact did not clear the wall and landed in foul territory. The West Coast League does not allow the umpires to utilize in-game media to review umpire rulings.

The Sweets overcame the early deficit with four runs in the third inning. Patrick Caulfield was hit by a pitch with two out, Cesar Lopez singled him to third, and Brock Ephan crunched a three-run home run to left-center, his fifth of the season, to give Walla Walla its first lead of the night, 3-2. The final run of the frame scored after consecutive walks to Caleb Farmer, Chazz Martinez, Zac Berryman, and Emanuel Dean.

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Ridgefield responded with six runs after two were out in the top of the fourth.

The Sweets chipped away in the home fourth. Parker Price was hit by a pitch to lead off and Caulfield homered for the fifth time in 2019 – to left in this instance.

Walla Walla tied the game in the fifth. Berryman was hit by a pitch, Dean singled, Carson Green sacrificed the runners to second and third and, after a walk to Price, Caulfield skied a sacrifice fly to left. The tying run scored when Lopez reached base on an error that sent Dean home.

The Sweets got runners to third base in the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings, but were unable to deliver the go-ahead run.

Cameron Repetti took the hill after his mates took the lead in the ninth and nailed down the win with a 1-2-3 effort.

Game two of the three-game series is Sunday night at 6:05.

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The Walla Walla Sweets opened their final regular-season homestand at historic Borleske Stadium Friday night with a 6-2 victory over the Kelowna Falcons.

Brock Ephan, Caleb Farmer, and Chazz Martinez had two hits apiece, and Emanuel Dean hit his first home run of the season as Walla Walla improved its records to 8-10 in the second half of West Coast League play and 26-19 overall.

Right-hander Ty Hueckman threw five innings of one-run, three-hit ball and struck out a handful of hitters on his way to improving his record to 4-3.

Hueckman allowed a two-out, RBI triple to Richie Sede in the second inning before the Sweets backed him with  significant run support in the home half of inning two. Ephan and Farmer singled, Justin Folz walked, and Martinez rolled a base hit to right field to score two. Dean then deposited a 3-and-1 pitch from Falcons’ starter Wyatt Hummel over the left-field wall to give Walla a 5-1 lead.

“I knew it was gone off the bat,” Dean said. “It was a great feeling. The whole crowd was into it. It was an amazing feeling.”

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Hueckman retired six of the eight hitters he faced during innings three and four and his teammates rewarded him with a tally in the fourth. Martinez led off with a single and, two outs later, Ryan Johnston walked. Parker Price singled in Martinez to make it 6-1.

Hueckman’s final inning had just one blemish – a one-out double by Brandon Hupe.

Reliever Nate Dahle allowed two walks in both the sixth and seventh innings. He gave up just an unearned run in the sixth.

Kelowna may have done further damage, but a base-running blunder in the seventh cost it dearly. With Hupe at second and Brayden Merritt at first, James Shimashita doubled to left-center, but Merritt passed Hupe between second and third for out No. 2. Dahle struck out Austen Butler for the third out.

Newcomer Spencer Schwehr came on in the eighth and allowed just a two-out single to Sede. In the ninth, he fanned Hupe and Merritt skied to deep left. Schwehr K’d Matt Voelzke to end the game.

“They put the ball in play and and hit it right at people,” Schwehr said of his first inning of work. “The second inning was better. I was more down in the zone. My change up was better.”

The Sweets open a three-game series with the Ridgefield Raptors Saturday night at 7:05.

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The Walla Walla Sweets scored early and late against the Portland Pickles in the final game of a three-game West Coast League baseball series Thursday night at Walker Stadium.

Walla Walla was on the brink of claiming a series win when it broke a 6-6 tie with two runs in the top of the ninth inning.

But Portland responded with three in the bottom of the ninth and eked out a 9-8 victory.

The heartbreaking loss dropped the Sweets to 7-10 in the WCL’s second half and 25-19 overall. Portland improved to 10- 8 in the second half and 19-25 on the season.

Walla Walla started off in a positive light. Patrick Caulfield walked with one out in the first, stole second and third base, and scored when Brock Ephan socked his fourth home run of the season. Caulfield now has a WCL-leading 31 thefts.

Starting pitcher Ryan Johnston, despite some early struggles, shut out the Pickles over the first three innings. Portland stranded two runners in the first, and was set down by Johnston 1-2-3 in both innings two and three.

But in the fourth, Johnston allowed a one-out home run to Thomas Rudinsky. With two out, the Pickles used two Walla Walla errors to plate three unearned runs. Jake Dahle replaced Johnston and got the final out in the fourth.

Parker Price and Caulfield drew two-out walks in the fifth, and Price scored on a single by Cesar Lopez, who extended his current hitting streak to 10 games.

Jake Dahle and Landon Boeneke faced the minimum number of hitters in the fifth and sixth innings, respectively, and neither hurler allowed a run.

Walla Walla retook the lead in the seventh. Emanuel Dean led off with a double and Bryce Vitt singled him to third. Price brought Dean in with a base knock and Caulfield sacrificed Vitt to third and Price to second. Lopez bounced a single through a drawn-in infield to put the Sweets in front 6-4.

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The Pickles tied the score in the home seventh on a two-out, two-run single by Chase Luttrell.

It stayed tied until the ninth. Ephan led off with a walk and was sacrificed to second by Justin Folz. Ephan went to third on a passed ball and scored the tie-breaking run on a Caleb Farmer hit. Chazz Martinez singled and Dean singled in Farmer.

Ephan, who threw a three-up, three-down eighth inning, gave up a lead-off single to Alex Lambeau in the bottom of the ninth and John Jensen homered to right to knot the score at 8-8. Dimick Wood replaced Ephan. Gabe Skoro reached on an error, Kyle Manzardo singled, and Rudinsky later drew an intentional walk to load the bases. Luttrell then lifted a shallow fly to left that was dropped, allowing Skoro to score the winning run.

The Sweets open a six-game homestand Friday night at 7:05 against Kelowna.

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The Walla Walla Sweets kick off their final regular-season homestand Friday night at historic Borleske Stadium.

Walla Walla hosts the Kelowna Falcons Friday night at 7:05, then welcomes the Ridgefield Raptors to Borleske Stadium for a three-game set Saturday (7:05), Sunday (6:05), and Monday (6:35). Kelowna returns to Walla Walla for contests Tuesday (6:35) and Wednesday (7:05).

The Sweets enter a matchup tonight in Portland 3-and-2 on their current and last six-game road trip of 2019. Walla Walla is 7-9 in the West Coast League’s second half and 25-18 overall.

Walla Walla evened its three-game series against the Pickles Wednesday night with a 5-3 victory at Walker Stadium. Pitchers Ben Johnson, Mason Kokodynski, and Nick Irwin combined to shut out Portland on four hits over the first seven innings. Three of the four frames worked by Johnson – innings one, two, and four – ended with double plays executed by the Sweets defense. Second baseman Justin Folz commenced the first twin killing and shortstop Parker Price started the latter two.

Patrick Caulfield and Brock Ephan collected first-inning RBI on a single and sacrifice fly to center, respectively, while Price and Cesar Lopez bashed two-out, back-to-back doubles in the ninth.  Walla Walla’s run output was also highlighted with two doses of opportunism. Folz scored in the second inning on a Pickles’ error and Ephan slid across home plate on a passed ball.

Lopez extended his hitting streak to nine games with a two-hit performance Wednesday. Ephan has now hit in five of his last six games after going 2-for-3 in that game, and Caulfield scorched the first-base-to-second-base path in two instances to raise his WCL-leading total of stolen bases to 29.

Five proved to be an unlucky number for the Sweets prior to Wednesday’s triumph. They opened their road trip at Cowlitz with a 5-1 loss and dropped the opening game of their series with Portland, 5-4, on Tuesday night. Sanchwiched between that duo of disappointments was a pair of 12-run efforts against the Black Bears. Walla Walla beat Cowlitz 12-2 on Sunday afternoon and 12-6 on Monday night at Story Field in Longview.

Caulfield is seventh in the league in hitting with a .340 batting average. Lopez is at .313. Caulfield and Lopez have combined for 34 multiple-hit games this season (18 and 16, respectively). The two have nine games between them in which they have achieved three hits or more – Caulfield five, Lopez four.

Pitcher Travis Craven, who logged his first win of the season with five one-hit innings against Cowlitz on Monday, is the lone Sweets hurler in the league’s top 10 in earned run average. He is third with a 2.06 mark. Craven has thrown 39.1 innings and has allowed 28 hits and 11 runs (nine earned). The Whitman College star has walked 15 and struck out 41.

The Sweets – who won two of three games at Ridgefield in late June and dropped two out of three in Kelowna in early July – will face tough hitters and two pitchers who, like Craven, are in the top 10 in the ERA category during this homestand. The Raptors’ Michael Hicks is hitting .316 with six home runs and 34 RBI and teammates Grayson Sterling and Jack Bauer are at .295 and .283, respectively. Bauer, like Hicks, has a half-dozen round trippers. Cole Commings leads Falcons’ swingers with a .289 average and both Tyler Grissom and James Shimashita sport .271 marks. Kelowna’s Blake Tritch (3.50 ERA) and Ridgefield’s Joey Martin (3.72), who the Sweets defeated on June 28, rank eighth and 10th, respectively, in earned run average.

SWEET BITES

Sweets scoring by inning (WCL games only) – 31 41 30 24 32 25 20 26 18 – 247. Opponents scoring by inning (WCL games only) – 28 24 12 36 17 26 19 33 13 – 209*. * – total includes a 19th-inning run.

Multiple-hit games-three hits or more (WCL games only): Patrick Caulfield 18-5, Cesar Lopez 16-4, Justin Folz 10-3, Chazz Martinez 7-0, Caleb Farmer 6-1, Brock Ephan 6-1, Parker Price 6-1, Jordan Stubbings 4-0, Michael Petrie 3-1, Carson Green 3-0, Ben Fariss 3-0, Emanuel Dean 2-1, Ryan Johnston 2-0, David Le Bioda 2-0, Brandon Wagstaff 2-0, Connor Coballes 2-0, Connor Cirillo 1-0, Tristan King 1-0.

Sweets day-by-day records – Monday: 2-1; Tuesday 5-3; Wednesday 4-4; Thursday 6-0; Friday 5-2; Saturday 5-4; Sunday 3-4. NOTE: Includes league and non-league games.

Sweets all-time, regular-season records vs. current WCL opponents: Corvallis 18-30; Wenatchee 38-32; Kelowna 29-33; Cowlitz 25-29; Bend 27-27; Bellingham 21-31; Victoria 17-15; Yakima Valley 17-16; Port Angeles 4-8; Portland 6-5; Ridgefield 2-1.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS AT BORLESKE STADIUM

Aug. 4 – Kids Day presented by Sweet Basil. Kids 12 years of age and under, accompanied by an adult, will be admitted free.

Aug. 6 – Bud Light Batting Practice and $1 Del Taco Tacos.

1. Aug. 7 – Fan Appreciation Night presented by Columbia REA. The first 1,000 fans through the gates will receive a pair of Sweets socks. A fireworks show will follow the game.

The Walla Walla Sweets took a 4-0 lead after two-and-a-half innings of their West Coast League baseball game with Portland on Wednesday night at Walker Stadium.

But it took a ninth-inning insurance run, coupled with a four-strikeout relief effort from Chazz Martinez, for Sweets Nation to breathe easy after a 5-3 triumph.

Walla Walla improved its second-half WCL record to 7-9 and is 25-18 overall. The gallant Pickles, who edged the Sweets on Tuesday night 5-4, are 9-8 in half two and 18-25 on the season against league opponents.

Both Portland and Cowlitz, which lost at Victoria 5-4 in 10 innings on Wednesday, are three-and-a-half games behind Corvallis in the WCL South’s second-half standings. Should the Knights win the second half, the South Division wild-card  playoff berth would go to the team with the second best overall record. Walla Walla leads Ridgefield (20-24) by five-and-a-half games in that scenario and the Black Bears (19-25) by six-and-a-half. Portland is seven off the potential wild-card pace.

Ryan Johnston and Parker Price led off Wednesday’s game with walks. One out later, Patrick Caulfield rolled a single through the right side of the Pickles’ infield to send Johnston home. Brock Ephan followed with a sacrifice fly to plate the second run of the inning.

Sweets starting pitcher Ben Johnson allowed a single and hit a batter to start the home first. But he got Kyle Manzardo, the Pickles’ leading hitter, to fly out to center field and Conner Wojahn to hit into a 4-6-3 double play.

Justin Folz and Bryce Vitt started the second inning with singles. Michael Petrie hit into a 5-4 fielder’s choice. Folz later scored from third on a throwing error by Portland starting catcher Darius Perry.

Johnson got the pitcher’s best friend in the bottom of the second after a bunt single by Chase Luttrell. He struck out Kyle Velazquez, then Alex Lambeau grounded into a 6-4-3 twin killing.

Ephan stroked a two-out single in the third inning and rumbled to third on a Caleb Farmer double off the left-field wall. Ephan belly flopped across home plate on a passed ball moments later to make it 4-0.

Johnson retired the side in the latter part of inning three and faced the minimum number of hitters in the fourth. He fanned John Arndorfer to start the fourth, walked Manzardo, and Wojahn hit into a 6-4-3 double play.

Relief pitcher Mason Kokodynski racked up key strikeouts to conclude the fifth and sixth innings and keep the shutout alive. He K’d Thomas Rudinsky with a runner at second in the fifth, and worked his way out of a second-and-third, one-out jam in the sixth with back-to-back strikeouts of Manzardo and Wojahn.

Nick Irwin tossed a scoreless seventh inning for the Sweets. But he allowed a run on two hits in the eighth and exited the game after striking out Wojahn. With runners at second and third, Martinez yielded a two-run double to left by Luttrell before fanning Velazquez for out No. 3.

Price and Lopez drilled consecutive two-out, two-base hits – Price off the left-field wall and Lopez in the right-center alley – to produce Walla Walla’s final run of the game. The RBI was the 30th of the season for Lopez, who extended his hitting streak to nine games with a seventh-inning single.

Martinez struck out Lambeau and Rudinsky to begin the ninth. He then walked Austin Lively, but sat John Jensen down on strikes for the final out of the contest.

Caulfield stole second base in both innings one and seven to bring his league-leading total to 29. Farmer now possesses a five-game hitting streak and Ephan has hit safely in five of his last six games.

The rubber game of the three-game series is Thursday night at 7:05.

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The Walla Walla Sweets held a 2-0 lead  after an inning-and-a-half of their West Coast League baseball game Tuesday night against the Portland Pickles at Walker Stadium.

But the home team scored a run in the second inning and four runs on five hits in the fourth, then withstood a late Sweets rally to post a 5-4 victory in the opening game of the three-game series.

Portland pulled into a second-place tie with Cowlitz at 9-7 in the WCL South Division’s second-half standings-two-and-a-half games behind Corvallis. The Black Bears are 19-24 overall and the Pickles are 18-24 on the season.

Walla Walla is now 6-9 in the second half and 24-18 overall.

The Sweets got a lead-off walk from Ryan Johnston in the first inning. Johnston went to second when Parker Price drew a base on balls. Cesar Lopez extended his hitting streak to eight games by dropping a single into left-center field that brought Johnston in with the first run of the game.

Justin Folz started the Sweets second with a double and went to third on a passed ball. Caleb Farmer walked one out later and the two executed a double steal  that put Walla Walla ahead 2-0.

Sweets starting pitcher Reid Sebby jarred the Pickles in order in the first inning, but walked Thomas Rudinsky to begin the second. Rudinsky, who was hitting just .188 going into the night, scored on a two-out double that Jonathan Kelly bounced down the left-field line.

Walla Walla wasted a two-out double by Patrick Caulfield in the top of the third inning, and Sebby 1-2-3’d Portland in the bottom half of the frame.

The Sweets were unable to put a two-out single by Farmer to good use in the fourth inning, and the scene was set for Portland’s fourth-inning follies. Chase Luttrell gave the Pickles a 3-2 edge with a two-run single, Gabe Skoro singled in the third run of the inning, and the last run scored on a wild pitch.

Portland loaded the bases on three walks issued by Dimick Wood in the fifth inning before Andrew Mosiello came on and struck out Kelly to end the inning.

Johnston walked to begin the Sweets fifth. He stole second, went to third on a Price grounder to second, and scored on a Lopez grounder to first.

Caulfield fought for a free pass leading off the Walla Walla eighth. Brock Ephan singled Caulfield to second, then was replaced by Emanuel Dean. Folz walked to load the bases. But reliever Tim Post entered and got Chazz Martinez to hit into a 4-6-3 double play that plated Caulfield,  and retired Farmer on a grounder to short.

Price gave the Sweets hope in the ninth with a two-out walk, but Lopez lifted a fly ball that John Arndorfer ran down in the left-center alley for the final out of the game.

Game two of the series is Wednesday night at 7:05.

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Designated hitter Brock Ephan drove in five runs and left-hander Travis Craven recorded his first win of the season Monday night as the Walla Walla Sweets rallied from an early 2-0 deficit to post a 12-6 victory over the Cowlitz Black Bears in the rubber game of a three-game West Coast League baseball series at Lower Columbia College’s Story Field in Longview.

Walla Walla, which scored 12 runs in a 12-2 triumph on Sunday, used nine hits and 10 walks from Black Bears’ pitchers to post its second one-sided victory in succession.

Monday’s conquest clinched the Sweets ninth series win of 2019 and the season set with Cowlitz four victories to two. Walla Walla took two of three games from the Black Bears when the teams met July 2-4 at Borleske Stadium.

Monday’s game did not start out in promising fashion for the visitors. Cowlitz center fielder Austin Bell led off the first inning with a five-pitch walk against Craven. The Black Bears’ Andres Sosa took Craven’s next delivery over the right-field wall to put Cowlitz up 2-0.

Black Bears’ starter Alex Salazar no-hit Walla Walla through the first three innings and faced the minimum number of hitters.

Craven regained the composure that earned him a spot on the WCL South Division All-Star team and retired 12 of the 15 hitters he faced in the second through fifth innings.

The Sweets got the offense in gear in the top of the fourth inning. Ryan Johnston and Justin Folz walked. Cesar Lopez knifed an RBI double through the left-center field alley that scored Johnston and sent Folz to third. Chazz Martinez was handed a free pass, and Brock Ephan torched a two-bagger to right field that brought in Folz and Lopez, and advanced Martinez to third. Martinez scored on a wild pitch and Ephan took third. Ephan scored on a Caleb Farmer single to center.

Connor Cirillo walked to lead off a four-run fifth inning. One out later, Folz earned a base on balls. Martinez walked to load the bases, and Ephan lasered a three-RBI double to right center. Farmer, as he did in the fourth inning, sent Ephan to the plate with a single that grew Walla Walla’s lead to seven tallies, 9-2.

The Sweets scored two more times in the sixth. Bryce Vitt led off with a base knock and went to second on a one-out walk issued to Johnston. Folz doubled to right to score Vitt and advance Johnston to third. Johnston hit home plate on a Lopez bouncer to second.

Newcomer Jake Dahle threw scoreless sixth and seventh frames before his teammates scored their last run of the game. Folz lined a one-out single to right and Lopez sent him around with a two-base hit.

Cowlitz scored twice in both the eighth and ninth innings to establish the final margin.

Walla Walla starts a three-game series in Portland Tuesday night at 7:05.

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Cesar Lopez and Brock Ephan combined for seven hits while pitchers Brayde Hirai and Landon Boeneke combined on a three-hitter Sunday as the Walla Walla Sweets powered their way to a 12-2 victory over the Cowlitz Black Bears in West Coast League baseball action at Lower Columbia College’s Story Field in Longview.

Walla Walla, which scored just 25 runs in its previous nine games, busted loose for 12 runs on 12 hits on Sunday. Lopez led the way with four hits and Ephan had three.

Ryan Johnston started off the Walla Walla first with a walk. One out later, Lopez lined a single off the right shin of Cowlitz starter Dylan Pottgieser, thus leading to an early exit by the Black Bears’ hurler. Chazz Martinez followed with a walk against Dale Takalo, and Johnston scored on a wild pitch.

Cowlitz evened the score on a balk in the home first before the Sweets broke through for two runs in the second. Justin Folz walked with one out, Patrick Caulfield drew a base on balls with two out, and Lopez drove them both in with a looping double to left field.

Hirai retired six of seven hitters he faced over his next two frames and chalked up a couple of strikeouts in the process.

Johnston and Lopez manufactured a run in the fourth with a double steal. Lopez stole second and Johnston swiped home.

Hirai walked the first two hitter he faced in the bottom of the fourth, but proved to be more than up to the task of keeping the 4-1 Sweets lead. Brian Cromwell bunted in the air to Hirai, Seth Beckstead bounced back to the mound, and Zach Smith was denied on a grounder to third.

Walla Walla upped its advantage to five, 6-1, in the fifth. Parker Price reached base on a fielder’s choice, stole both second and third, and scored on an error. Johnston later contributed a run-scoring single.

The lead grew to 7-1 in the sixth. Lopez led off with a single and crossed the plate on a two-out double by Ephan.

It became 8-1 in the eighth. Lopez doubled, Martinez was hit by a pitch, and Caleb Farmer singled in his two-bagging teammate.

Four more runs crossed in the ninth. Farmer and Dimick Wood drew bases-loaded walks, Price was hit by a pitch with the sacks juiced, and Carson Green singled for the Sweets final run of the game.

While the Sweets enjoyed a productive offensive night, Boeneke retired 11 of 14 hitters faced in innings five through eight before yielding a run in the ninth. His five-inning effort, which included two K’s, earned him the win.

The rubber game of the series is Monday night at 6:35.

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The Walla Walla Sweets managed just six hits and committed four errors Saturday night in a 5-1 loss to the Cowlitz Black Bears in the opening game of a three-game West Coast League baseball series at Lower Columbia College’s Story Field in Longview.

The Sweets, who have lost seven of their last nine games, are now 4-8 in the second half and 22-17 in all WCL games this season. Cowlitz improved its second-half record to 9-4 and is 19-21 overall.

Walla Walla’s evening of offensive ineptitude was established in the first two innings. Cesar Lopez belted a two-out double and went to third on a passed ball, but did not score.

The Black Bears clutched up in the bottom of the first. Austin Bell, who led all batters with three hits in the game, led off with a single and scored on a two-out hit by Josh Marchese.

The Sweets got a lead-off two-bagger from Caleb Farmer in the second inning. He went to third on a fly ball to deep center lifted by Justin Folz. Emanuel Dean walked one out later, but Walla Walla failed to tally.

Sweets starting pitcher Ty Hueckman did his part to keep Walla Walla close with four innings of one-run, four-hit ball, but allowed a lead-off home run to Heath Pickhardt in the fifth. Hueckman’s night ended after five frames in which he logged five strikeouts and did not walk a batter.

Walla Walla managed just two hits in the first five innings against Cowlitz starter Nate Packard, but rallied against reliever Kyle Rich in the sixth. Patrick Caulfield led off with a triple down the right-field line and scored on a grounder to second struck by Parker Price. Lopez and Chazz Martinez followed with back-to-back single that set up a runners-at-the corners, one-out scenario, but the Sweets were unable to produce the tying run.

Cowlitz put the game out of reach with two runs in the seventh inning and another in the eighth.

In spite of its defensive shortcomings, Walla Walla executed some stellar plays while out in the field. Farmer dove to his right and threw out Zack Smith on a bang-bang play at first base in the second inning. Catcher Bryce Vitt threw out Bell trying to steal second in the fifth inning and gunned down Braden DeBenedictis at third one frame later. Folz ended the bottom of the eighth by ranging to his left to smother a ground ball hit by Bell and threw him out at first base.

The middle game of the three-game series is Sunday afternoon at 3:05.

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Visiting Wenatchee scored four unearned runs in the top of the eighth inning Friday night and salvaged the final game of a three-game series with the Walla Walla Sweets, 5-3, at Borleske Stadium.

Both starting pitchers – Walla Walla right hander Ben Johnson and southpaw Jake Saum  of the AppleSox – retired opposing batters in order in the first inning. Johnson struck out Connor Kiffer to begin the game, gave up a single to Ryan Altenberger, and got Johnny Sage to hit into a 6-4-3 double play.

Johnson gave up back-to-back, one-out singles to Blake Klassen and Hunter Montgomery in the second inning, then walked Kody Darcy to load the bases. Brett Gillis lined out to second for out No. 2, but Alex Jemel drew a walk to force in a run. Johnson avoided further damage by getting Kiffer to ground out to third.

Johnson worked a 1-2-3 third before giving way to Andrew Mosiello, who allowed just one hit in the fourth inning, struck out the side in the fifth, and yielded a one-base knock and fanned two in the sixth.

The Sweets broke through against Saum in the fifth. Michael Petrie walked with two out and scored the tying run when Connor Cirillo drove a three-base hit into the right-center field alley.

Walla Walla edged ahead in the sixth inning. Ryan Johnston led off with a single, went to second on a balk, and ran to third on a Cesar Lopez single. Johnston scored when Brock Ephan hit into a 6-4-3 double play.

Petrie and Cirillo walked in the seventh. Parker Price reached on a two-out error that allowed Petrie to score.

Right hander Mason Kokodynski authored a perfect seventh inning including a strikeout. Wenatchee’s Justin Lutz reached on an error with one out in the eighth and Sage singled. Kokodynski struck out Dalton Harum, but walked Klassen on a borderline 3-2 pitch that put AppleSox at every base. Following a pitching change, Montgomery and Darcy poked back-to-back, two-run singles.

The Sweets tried to come back in the ninth. Cirillo and Price walked, then moved up on a wild pitch. Johnson then made admirable contact on a pay-off pitch, but flew out to Sage in left for the final out of the game.

Walla Walla opens a three-game series and six-game road trip Saturday night at 6:35 against the Cowlitz Black Bears.

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The Walla Walla Sweets scored three times in the bottom of the first inning and starting pitcher Ryan Johnston tossed six hitless frames highlighted by eight strikeouts Thursday night in a 3-2 West Coast League victory over the Wenatchee AppleSox at Borleske Stadium.

Walla Walla, which clinched its eighth series triumph, is now 4-6 in the WCL’s second half and 22-15 in all league games this season.

Wenatchee is 8-6 in the second half and 20-21 in 2019.

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Johnston allowed a lead-off walk to Kodie Kolden to start Thursday’s game, but retired Ryan Altenberger on a foul fly to catcher Bryce Vitt, and both Johnny Sage and Dalton Harum by swinging strikeout.

The Sweets Patrick Caulfield struck out to begin the bottom of the first, but reached base when AppleSox catcher Justin Lutz was unable to locate the third-strike delivery from starter Seth Kuykendall. Parker Price moved Caulfield around to third with a double into the right field corner. Cesar Lopez grounded to short to bring in Caulfield and send Price to third. Chazz Martinez lifted a sacrifice fly to center to score Price. Newcomer Bryce Vitt kept the inning going with a single and David Le Bioda dropped a hit into left field that bounced behind a diving Sage for an RBI double.

Johnston posted three-up, three-down innings in the second, third, and fourth. The latter inning included a foul fly off the bat of Sage that Vitt, sliding on his knees, caught in front of the Sweets third-base dugout.

“I slid, turned my back into the fence, and came up with it in the palm of my glove,” Vitt said.

Blake Klassen was hit by a pitch to begin the fifth. Not to worry, though. Hunter Montgomery grounded to second, Connor Kiffer flew out to right, and Lutz rolled to first to conclude the frame and keep the no-hitter intact.

Strikeouts of Jason Harayda, Kolden, and Altenberger brought the top of the sixth to a quick end.

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Harum lifted a deep fly ball to right-center field with one out in the seventh that Caulfield dove for, but was unable to grab. By the time right fielder Emanuel Dean threw the ball back into the infield, Harum was at third with a triple. He scored on an infield grounder by Klassen. Landon Boeneke replaced Johnston and got Montgomery on a fly to left.

POST GAME INTERVIEW WITH RYAN JOHNSTON AND BRADYE HIRAI

“We came out ready to play,” Johnston said. “I was able to throw strikes and the defense helped me out by making some great plays. I threw my off-speed for strikes and was keeping their hitters off balance.”

Kiffer and Lutz walked to begin the Wenatchee eighth. Harayda sacrificed the runners to second and third, and was safe at first on an error. Lefty Brayde Hirai entered and got Kolden to ground into a 5-2 fielder’s choice, then fanned Altenberger. After a walk to Sage that forced in a run, Lopez tracked down a fly to left by Harum a stride from the wall to keep the Sweets up.

Hirai walked Klassen to open the ninth. He struck out Montgomery on a pitch in the dirt for the first out of the inning and, on the play, Klassen attempted to go to second. Vitt’s throw through was high, but Price leaped high in the air, gloved the ball, and slapped the tag on Klassen for the second out. Kiffer grounded to second for the game’s final out.

The final game of the series is Friday night at 7:05. As part of the Sweets 10-year celebration, Top 32 Sweets Memories posters will go to the first 1,000 fans through the Borleske Stadium gates.

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The Walla Walla Sweets scored four times in the seventh inning and once in the eighth Wednesday night, then stifled a ninth-inning rally by Wenatchee, and posted a 7-4 victory in the opening game of a three-game West Coast League baseball series at Borleske Stadium.

Walla Walla, which snapped a five-game losing streak, improved its WCL second-half record to 3-6 and its overall league mark to 21-15.

The AppleSox are now 8-5 in the second half of the season, and 20-20 overall in WCL play.

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The Sweets, who were averaging just two runs a game during their five-game slide, scored a pair of two-out runs in the second inning. Parker Price reached base on the first of five Wenatchee errors in the game, and scored the game’s initial run when Carson Green divided the right-center field gap with a triple Green crossed the plate on a single up the middle by Connor Cirillo.

Wenatchee scored four times in the fourth inning and AppleSox starting pitching Ryan Long helped keep the visitors in the driver’s seat with a solid six-inning effort. Long retired 11 of the final 15 hitters he faced after yielding the Cirillo base knock in the second.

The AppleSox had a chance to break the game open in the seventh inning when they loaded the bases with two out. But Walla Walla reliever Nick Irwin snuffed out the threat by striking out Kody Darcy looking on a 2-2 pitch.

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Walla Walla rallied against the Wenatchee bullpen in the home half of the seventh. Cameron Sommer hit Michael Petrie to begin the frame, Green got aboard on an error and Cirillo bounced out to the mound to advance the runners to second and third. Patrick Caulfield scored Petrie and moved Green up 90 feet with his third single of the contest. After pitcher Landon Schirer entered and Caulfield was thrown out trying to steal second base, Justin Folz walked, and Cesar Lopez singled in Green. Brock Ephan then worked the count full against Schirer before smashing a tie-breaking, two-RBI double to right that put the Sweets up 6-4.

“He tried to come after me with a fastball,” Ephan said. “I got a 3-2 fastball inside and was able to drive it.”

Irwin started the top of the eighth by fanning Brett Gillis and, after giving up a single to Connor Kiffer, struck out Kodie Kolden and retired Ryan Altenberger on a fly to center.

Price led off the Sweets eighth with a walk and scored on Wenatchee’s final snafu of the night.

The AppleSox Johnny Sage led off the ninth against Irwin with a soft single over the second-base bag and just out of the reach of Cirillo. Dalton Harum hit a deep fly to left that Green caught for the first out of the inning, and Blake Klassen produced a broken-bat hit through the left side of the infield. But Irwin displayed glacial calm the rest of the way and used that cool persona to strike out Hunter Montgomery swinging and Darcy looking to complete two-and-a third innings of tally-free relief.

“It was about locating the fastball and throwing the slider when they didn’t expect it,” said the 6-foot-1, 150-pound Irwin – lovingly known to his teammates as “Bones.” “I was able to hold down their offense so ours could take flight.”

The middle game of the three-game series, to be highlighted by Bud Light Batting Practice and $1 Del Taco Tacos, is Thursday night at 6:35.

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The Walla Walla Sweets (2-6 in the West Coast League’s second half and 20-15 in all WCL games) resume league action Wednesday night when they open a three-game series against the Wenatchee AppleSox (8-4, 20-19) at historic Borleske Stadium. Game times are 6:35 Wednesday and Thursday, and 7:05 on Friday.

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Walla Walla will then leave town for its last six-game road trip of the season – a rendezvous that will take it to Cowlitz (8-4, 18-21) July 27-29 and Portland (7-2, 16-19) July 30-Aug. 1.

The Sweets are coming off being swept on the road by three-time defending league champion Corvallis. The Knights scored single runs in both the eighth and ninth innings on Sunday for a come-from-behind, 3-2 victory. Corvallis posted impressive wins in the first two games of the set, 9-2 on Friday and 10-3 Saturday.

Walla Walla’s Chazz Martinez smacked a 424-foot home run leading off the second inning on Sunday to shatter a scoreless tie and provide the Sweets with their first lead of the series. Starting pitcher Brayde Hirai threw four shutout innings, struck out three and picked off a runner as part of his afternoon in the bright, Corvallis sun. Caleb Farmer went deep with two outs in the seventh to put Walla Walla in front, 2-1.

David Le Bioda and Ryan Johnston lofted long flies to account for the Sweets scoring on Saturday. Le Bioda hit a two-run homer in the fifth and Johnston belted a solo shot in the eighth.

Cesar Lopez drove in Walla Walla’s first run on Friday with a 4-6 fielder’s choice in the third inning, and a seventh-inning throwing error led to the Sweets last run of the contest.

Walla Walla centerfielder Patrick Caulfield continues to rank among the WCL’s top-10 hitters. The UCLA Bruin-to-be and former Santa Barbara City College star is sixth with a .341 batting average. He is second in runs scored (34) and has stolen a league-leading 26 bases. His pre-All-Star break portfolio also includes eight doubles, four home runs and 19 RBI.

Sweets pitchers Travis Craven and Ty Hueckman are in the top 10 in earned run average with marks of 1.91 (second) and 3.18 (ninth), respectively. Craven has allowed just 26 hits and seven earned runs, and has struck out 34 in 33 innings. Hueckman has given up 10 earned run and 12 walks, and fanned 25 in 28.1 frames.

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Walla Walla took two out of three games from all three of its upcoming opponents during the WCL’s first half. Carson Green hit a two-out, two-run home run in the ninth inning of the opening game of a Father’s Day weekend series in Wenatchee. It was the difference in a 3-1 Sweets victory. Justin Folz connected for a two-RBI single in the seventh inning of game two that lifted Walla Walla to a 7-6 triumph that improved its franchise-best record start to 8-0. The Sweets led 7-0 after two-and-a-half innings of the series finale, but the AppleSox Quinn Ayers completed a massive comeback by the home team with a two-run dinger in the seventh inning of an 11-10 win.

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Caulfield ripped a three-run home run in the series opener versus visiting Portland June 18 and Walla Walla withstood a bases-loaded, one-out scenario in the ninth inning for a 3-2 conquest. The Pickles scored six times in the first inning the following evening and held on for an 8-7 victory. Connor Cirillo highlighted a five-run second inning in the final game of the series with a three-run long fly and the Sweets won, 9-6.

Walla Walla took the first game of the Cowlitz series two weeks later by a resounding count of 13-4 at Borleske Stadium. The Sweets obliterated an early 2-2 tie with deuces in the third, fifth and sixth innings, and added five runs in the eighth. Walla Walla led the middle game of the set, 6-3, after two innings, but managed just three hits the rest of the way in a 7-6 loss. The Sweets celebrated the Fourth of July with a 6-4 victory. Farmer snapped a 2-2, sixth-inning tie with a two-RBI triple that commenced a four-run uprising.

The AppleSox sport the WCL’s No. 4 batter. Outfielder Cole McKenzie is hitting .370. Teammate Kodie Kolden is tied for ninth with Cowlitz’s Andres Sosa at .316. Wenatchee’s Blake Klassen and Ryan Altenberger are batting .305 and .297, respectively. Portland’s Kyle Manzardo and John Jensen have also posted respectable numbers. Manzardo, who is tied for first in the league with 12 doubles, is hitting .295 and Jensen checks in at .289.

Wenatchee has two hurlers that have cracked the top 10 in ERA. Sam Wyatt is at 2.23 and Henrik Reinersten boasts a 3.27 showing.

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UPCOMING PROMOTIONS: 7/24 – In-stadium merchandise 40 percent off; 7/25 – Bud Light Batting Practice/ $1 Del Taco Tacos; 7/26 – Top 32 Sweets Moments Poster Giveaway (first 1,000 fans).

SWEET BITES

Sweets scoring by inning – 24 35 29 18 24 20 15 22 13 – 200; Opponents scoring by inning – 24 22 12 28 16 26 16 22 10 – 177* * -includes one run in 19th inning vs Victoria 7-17.

Multi-hit games: Patrick Caulfield 16; Cesar Lopez 9; Justin Folz 7; Parker Price 6; Chazz Martinez 6; Jordan Stubbings 4; Brock Ephan 3; Michael Petrie 3; Ben Fariss 3; Caleb Farmer 3; Carson Green 2; Emanuel Dean 2; Brandon Wagstaff 2; Connor Coballes 2; Ryan Johnston 1; David Le Bioda 1; Connor Cirillo 1; Tristan King 1.

Day Records: Monday: 1-1, Tuesday 5-2**, Wednesday 2-4**, Thursday 5-0**, Friday 5-1**, Saturday 5-3**, Sunday 2-4. ** – includes one non-league victory each of those days.

All-time, regular-season records vs. current WCL members: Corvallis 18-30; Wenatchee 36-31; Kelowna 29-33; Cowlitz 23-28; Bend 27-27; Bellingham 21-31; Victoria 17-15; Yakima Valley 17-16; Port Angeles 4-8; Portland 5-4; Ridgefield 2-1.

Sweets in 2019…

when leading after seven innings: 22-2; when leading after eight innings: 24-2; when trailing after seven innings: 0-9; when trailing after eight innings: 0-11; when scoring first: 13-7; when opponents score first: 12-8; when scoring two runs or less: 0-8; when scoring three runs or more: 25-7. These records include non-league games.

Corvallis scored one run in both the eighth and ninth innings Sunday afternoon and completed a three-game sweep of the Walla Walla Sweets with a 3-2, West Coast League baseball victory at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field.

The Knights improved to 7-1 in the WCL’s second half while the Sweets slipped to 2-6 after suffering their fifth straight loss.

Walla Walla starting pitcher Brayde Hirai set Corvallis down in order in the first inning. He retired Jake Holcroft on a fly ball to centerfield, Andy Atwood on a grounder to shortstop, and Briley Knight 4-3.

Chazz Martinez gave the Sweets their first lead of the series in the top of the second inning when he smashed an 0-1 pitch from Knights’ starter Tevita Gerber 424 feet to the left of the center-field  hitters’ eye.

Hirai pitched four innings of scoreless ball to keep the lead intact. He struck out three, walked one, and picked off a runner as part of his afternoon.

Corvallis tied the game in the fifth before Walla Walla retook the edge in the seventh. With two out, Caleb Farmer lifted a delivery from Knights’ reliever William Kempner to left field that bounced off the top of the wall, then cleared it for a solo home run.

The Sweets had a chance to expand their lead in the eighth, but left the bases loaded.

Corvallis tied the game in the eighth, and Nick Yovetich opened the Knights’ ninth with a single. He went to second on a wild pitch, and move to third on a Trace Tamarro sacrifice bunt. After an intentional walk to Zack Moeller, Michael Dixon delivered an infield single deep in the hole at shortstop to end the game.

Walla Walla absorbed its second straight loss of the season in a game which it led after seven innings. It is now 1-1 in games in which it is tied after eight frames.

The Sweets, following the two-day league All-Star break, return to WCL play Wednesday night when they open a three-game series with the Wenatchee AppleSox at Borleske Stadium at 6:35.

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The Walla Walla Sweets suffered their fourth straight loss Saturday night – a 10-3 defeat to the red-hot Corvallis Knights in West Coast League baseball action at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field.

Saturday’s triumph was Corvallis’ 21st in its last 22 WCL games and improved the Knights’ second-half and overall records to South Division-bests of 6-1 and 27-7.

The Sweets are now 2-5 and 20-14.

Walla Walla had a chance to break into the scoring column first on Saturday when Caleb Farmer and Justin Folz singled to start the second inning. But the opportunity fizzled after Parker Price, Brock Ephan, and David Le Bioda were retired in succession by Corvallis starting pitcher Brodie Cooper-Vasselakis.

The Knights put their first three hitters aboard in the home second and, unlike Walla Walla, made the most of their good fortune. Michael Curialle saw to it with a two-run single.

Andy Atwood tripled in Corvallis’ first run during a two-run third and later scored when he and Brooks Lee executed a double steal.

The Knights scored three times in the fourth before the Sweets tallied their first two runs of the night in the fifth. Ephan led off with a walk and Le Bioda punished a 2-1 pitch from Cooper-Vasselakis to the tune of a 373-foot home run to right field.

Briley Knight raised the Corvallis lead back to seven, 9-2, after spanking a two-RBI triple in the sixth inning.

Each team tallied a run in the eighth. Ryan Johnston belted a 364-foot home run with one out in the top half of the inning and Zack Moeller drew a bases-loaded walk in the home portion of inning eight.

Walla Walla slipped to 0-9 in games in which it has trailed after seven innings, 0-11 in contests which it trailed after eight frames, and 20-7 in league games in which it scored three runs or more.

The finale of the three-game series is Sunday at 3 p.m. The Sweets open a three-game, post-All-Star Break series Wednesday against against the Wenatchee AppleSox at historic Borleske Stadium.

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The Corvallis Knights remained red hot at the expense of the Walla Walla Sweets on Friday night at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field.

Corvallis, which emerged on top of the West Coast League’s South Division wars during the first half of the 2019 campaign, broke open a tight game with four runs in the sixth inning and cruised to a 9-2 victory in game one of a three-game weekend series.

The Knights, who have won 20 of their last 21 league games, are now 5-1 in the WCL’s second half and improved to 26-7 overall.

Walla Walla, which suffered its third straight loss, is 2-4 and 20-13.

Corvallis produced the game’s first run with two out in the bottom of the second inning. Michael Curialle doubled and scored on an Elliott Willy single.

The Sweets evened the score in the third. Patrick Caulfield earned a one-out walk, then stole second and third – giving him 26 stolen bases for the season. Ryan Johnston walked and Caulfield scored on a 4-6 fielder’s choice off the bat of Cesar Lopez.

Corvallis reclaimed the edge in the home third and never looked back.

Walla Walla managed just one baserunner in innings four through six. It was Caleb Farmer, who walked with two out in the sixth.

The Knights blew the game open with a quartet of two-out runs in the bottom of the sixth. Matthew Gretler singled in the first tally, Willy drove home two teammates with a double into the left-field corner, and then crossed the plate on a wild pitch.

Walla Walla scored its final run in the seventh. Michael Petrie stroked a one-out single and moved to third on a Brock Ephan hit. Each Sweet moved up 90 feet on an errant pick-off throw to third by Knights’ catcher Zack Moeller.

Corvallis picked up two more runs in the bottom of the seventh. Briley Knight led off with his sixth home run of the season – a towering blow to right and, after a walk to Brooks Lee, Moeller doubled for an RBI.

The Knights added an unearned run in the eighth against Ephan, who wound up striking out the side in his only inning of work.

Game two of the series is Saturday night at 6:30.

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Walla Walla centerfielder Patrick Caulfield is one of 12 players scheduled to participate in a Home-Run Derby competition on Monday that will kick off the West Coast League’s two-day All-Star extravaganza at Vince Genna Stadium in Bend, Commissioner Rob Neyer announced Friday.

The UCLA Bruin-to-be is fifth in the WCL in batting average (.362, 46-for-127). He has a league-leading 24 stolen bases in 27 attempts this season. The pre-All-Star resume is further spiced by eight doubles, four home runs and 19 RBI.

“It’s an honor to participate,” said Caulfield, who helped lead Santa Barbara City College to a 24-win season and playoff berth this past spring. “Hopefully, I can get a couple out.”

Caulfield is one of four Sweets who will suit up for the South Division All-Stars – joining teammates Justin Folz, Travis Craven, and Reid Sebby.

Walla Walla opens a three-game series at Corvallis tonight at 6:30.

The longest game in the history of the Walla Walla Sweets franchise ended in disappointment early Thursday morning at historic Borleske Stadium.

Chase Meidroth lofted a sacrifice fly to right field in the top of the 19th inning and the Victoria HarbourCats held off a Walla Walla rally in the bottom of the frame to eke out a 4-3 West Coast League baseball victory.

Victoria handed the Sweets just their third series loss of the season and improved to 7-3 in the second half of WCL play.

The heartbroken Sweets slipped to 2-3 in the second half and are now 20-12 in all league games.

Patrick Caulfield, who registered his 16th multi-hit game of the season, led off the bottom of the first inning with a double into the left-center field alley and scored the first run of the game one out later on a single to center by Cesar Lopez.

Jordan Stubbings led off the Sweets second with a single. Michael Petrie walked and Parker Price followed suit one out later. Caulfield was hit by a pitch to force in a run.

The HarbourCats scored an unearned run in the third inning against Sweets starting pitcher Ben Johnson. Chase Wehsener walked with two out, went to second on a Kyle Harper single, and crossed the plate on an error.

Walla Walla’s final tally came in the fourth inning on a 398-foot home run to left off the bat of Ben Fariss.

Pitchers Brennan Patterson, Charles Harrison, and Brayde Hirai combined to keep the HarbourCats off the scoreboard in innings four through eight despite some anxious moments in the fifth and sixth when the first two Victoria batters reached base on walks.

Tanner Haney started the HarbourCats’ ninth with a walk and Nick Plaia hit a two-run home run to left the knot the score at 3-3.

Both teams frittered away scoring chances over the next nine innings. The Sweets best opportunity squandered came in the 13th when they left the bases loaded.

Walla Walla’s threat in the bottom of the 19th started when Caulfield was hit by a pitch. Emanuel Dean singled him to third one out later. Dean went to second on  defensive indifference, but back-to-back strikeouts ended the game.

The Sweets open a three-game weekend series on Friday night in Corvallis. Games Friday and Saturday are scheduled for 6:30 and the pre-All-Star Break finale starts Sunday at 3 p.m.

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The Victoria HarbourCats scored six times on seven hits in the top half of the fourth inning Tuesday night, and pitchers Calvin Turchin and Connor Barison combined to allow just seven hits in a 7-1 victory over the Walla Walla Sweets in game two of a three-game West Coast League baseball series at Borleske Stadium.

Victoria, which finished at the top of the WCL’s North Division standings during the first half of league play, improved its second-half record to 6-3 and remained percentage points behind first-place Wenatchee.

Walla Walla, which suffered just its fourth home loss of the season, is 2-2 in the second half, 20-11 in all WCL games, and 25-11 overall.

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The HarbourCats tallied the contest’s first run with two out in the top of the first inning. Griffin Paxton and Tyson Hays drew back-to-back walks on four pitches, and Emilio Nogales singled in Paxton from second base.

Sweets starting pitcher Ty Hueckman enjoyed much more success in the top of the second inning despite a one-out walk to Nick Adams. He sent Matt Clayton back to the dugout on a grounder to second prior to issuing the free pass, then got Kyle Sherick to foul out to catcher Caleb Farmer and struck out Parker Bramlett.

The Sweets tied the game in the home half of the second. Justin Folz ripped a one-out double and moved to third on an infield hit by Parker Price. One out later, Emanuel Dean singled in Folz to knot the score at 1-1.

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Both starting pitchers opposed the minimum number of hitters in the third inning prior to the nightmarish fourth. Harrison Spohn hit a one-out homer, Adams socked a two-run bomb, Paxton drove a sacrifice fly to center field, and Hays and Nogales followed with RBI singles.

Walla Walla managed just two hits and five base runners in innings four through nine.

Right-hander Landon Boeneke allowed the final two runs of the fourth inning, but blanked the HarbourCats over the next two innings. Nate Dahle got himself in to, then out of, a bases-loaded, one-out quagmire in the seventh and tossed a spotless eighth. Southpaw Brayde Hirai K’d the first two hitters in the ninth on his way to a clean frame.

The final game of the series is Wednesday at 6:35 p.m.

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A quartet of Walla Walla Sweets were named to the West Coast League’s South Division All-Star team this morning, as announced by league commissioner Rob Neyer.

Those who will travel to Bend for next Tuesday’s WCL equivalent to the mid-summer classic are center fielder Patrick Caulfield, third baseman/designated hitter Justin Folz, and pitchers Travis Craven and Reid Sebby.

The group will depart for Bend after the Sweets wrap up a three-game weekend series in Corvallis on Sunday.

Caulfield, who plans to further his collegiate career at UCLA, is currently sixth in the league in batting (.362 avg.), and is first in stolen bases (23), second in runs scored (32), and tied for fourth in hits (42). He has four home runs and 18 runs batted in, and is the author of 15 multi-hit games this season.

Folz, who will be attending St. John’s University, is hitting .303 with a pair of taters and 14 RBI, and is tied for second in the WCL with 10 doubles.

Craven, a Whitman College star, ranks third in the West Coast League with a 1.55 earned run average. He has thrown 29 innings over his 10 starts this season and has yielded just 22 hits and seven runs (five earned). The southpaw has walked only nine batters and struck out 31. Craven gave up a run, fanned three, and walked two over four innings in the Sweets 6-3 victory over Victoria on Monday night at Borleske Stadium.

Sebby, a Cypress College product, sports a minuscule 0.55 ERA over 16.1 innings. He has allowed 15 hits, two runs (one earned), seven walks, and has K’d 20. The right-hander notched his sixth save after throwing a scoreless ninth inning Monday night.

“We are excited for Patrick, Justin, Travis, and Reid,” Walla Walla manager Frank Mutz said. “They have been leaders on and off the field – a big part of starting the season 25-10 – and deserve this recognition. We are proud they will represent our city and our team.”

Right-hander Ty Hueckman, a Nevada hurler, narrowly missed a spot on the South roster. Hueckman is among the top five (among qualifying pitchers) in the WCL South in six statistical categories including innings pitched (23), wins (3), win percentage (1.000), batting average against (.150), walks and hits per innings pitched (.910), and batting average on balls in play (.174). Hueckman ranks in the division’s top 10 in strikeouts (21, sixth), strikeout-to-walk ratio (1.792, ninth), and strikeouts per nine innings (8.217, seventh).

The Sweets host Victoria in the middle game of a three-game series tonight at 6:35.

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Two big swings proved to be enough for the Walla Walla Sweets Monday night in the opening game of a three-game West Coast League baseball series with the Victoria HarbourCats at historic Borleske Stadium.

Chazz Martinez belted a three-run home run and Ryan Johnston hammered a three-run double in the Sweets 6-3 victory.

Walla Walla is now 2-1 in the WCL’s second half, 20-10 in all league counters, and 25-10 overall. Victoria is 5-3 and 23-11.

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Sweets starting pitcher Travis Craven admittedly did not have his best stuff, but it was good enough to get him through four representative innings. He retired the first two hitters in the opening inning, then allowed the next two batters to reach base before striking out Nick Plaia to end the inning.

Johnston worked HarbourCats’ starter Mitch Lines for a one-out walk in the home first. Cesar Lopez, who connected for three hits on the night, singled Johnston to second. Martinez followed with his fourth home run of the season – a 381-foot fly that cleared the left-field wall.

Kyle Harper got a run back for Victoria in the second inning when he sent Craven’s first delivery over the wall in left. Harrison Spohn doubled five pitches later, and went to third on an infield out. But Craven struck out Chase Meidroth and got Parker Bramlett to ground out to short to end the frame.

The HarbourCats got their first two hitters aboard in the third. But Jason Willow, who led off with a single and went to second on a Chase Wehsener walk, was thrown out by catcher Michael Petrie in what turned out to be a futile attempt to swipe third. Tyson Hays singled and, after Plaia advanced Wehsener to third with a fly to center,  Craven exacted revenge on Harper by striking him out.

Craven faced the minimum number of hitters in the fourth. He allowed a two-out single to Meidroth, but Petrie closed out the inning by eliminating the Harbourcats’ No. 9 hitter 2-to-4.

Emanuel Dean, Petrie, and Patrick Caulfield singled with one out in the last of the fourth. Johnston worked the count to 2-and-2, then cleared the bases with a two-bagger that split the left-center alley and gave the Sweets a 6-1 lead.

Andrew Mosiello made the lead stand up. He retired nine of the 11 batters he threw to in innings five through seven and fanned four.

“I threw all my pitches for strikes and pounded the zone,” Mosiello said. “With the lead, you’re not to worried about giving up the lead, so you can be more aggressive and try different things out.”

POST GAME INTERVIEW WITH CHAZZ MARTINEZ, RYAN JOHNSTON, AND ANDREW MOSIELLO

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Victoria got a two-run home run from Tyson Hays in the eighth and Plaia doubled after that. Nick Irwin entered the game out of the bullpen and recorded three outs. He allowed a line drive to Harper that shortstop Caleb Farmer leaped into the air to glove for the first out, then got Spohn and Clayton to fly out to right and left, respectively.

Reid Sebby allowed back-to-back singles to start the ninth inning before putting the hammer down. He K’d Willow, then yielded a ground ball up the middle to Wehsener that Farmer underhanded to Johnston for the force out at second. Johnston then unleashed an accurate throw to first baseman Jordan Stubbings to complete a game-ending, 6-4-3 double play.

Game two of the series is Tuesday night at 6:35. The evening will include Bud Light batting practice and $1 Del Taco tacos.

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The Walla Walla Sweets, 1-1 in the second half of the West Coast League season, 19-10 in all WCL games, and 24-10 overall, resume league play Monday night when they open a three-game series with the Victoria HarbourCats (4-2, 22-11 prior to a Sunday game at Bend) at historic Borleske Stadium.

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Walla Walla is scheduled to have an off-day Thursday before traveling to Corvallis (3-1, 24-7 before a Sunday contest with Kelowna) this weekend for a pre-All-Star Game series Friday through Sunday at Goss Stadium at Coleman Field.

This week’s tasks figure to be daunting. Victoria went on an 8-and-2 tear to edge its way past Bellingham for first-half supremacy in the WCL’s North Division. The Knights, who the Sweets swept in a season-opening, three-game series June 4-6 in Walla Walla, have claimed 18 of their last 19 outings against league opposition, and prevailed in their final 15 first-half contests to earn a South Division playoff berth.

The Sweets defeated the Cascade Collegiate League, 5-2, on Saturday night in their final non-league game of 2019. Cesar Lopez had three hits in the game while Patrick Caulfield, Caleb Farmer, and Jordan Stubbings collected two apiece. Walla Walla pitchers Chazz Martinez, Dimick Wood, Charles Harrison, Brayde Hirai, Ryan Johnston, and Reid Sebby combined on a five-hitter and to strike out 19 in the game.

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Prior to 9-3 and 18-3 triumphs over the Military All-Stars, the Sweets split two games in Bellingham before having the rubber match of the series postponed by rain. It has been rescheduled, if necessary, August 12. Walla Walla dropped the series opener Monday night by a 4-1 count before bouncing back for an 11-7 win on Tuesday. The Sweets scored all of their runs in the latter game with two out.

Walla Walla dropped just its second series of the year before its trip to Bellingham. The Sweets lost two of three games to Kelowna to begin a six-game road trip. A game planned for July 5 was postponed due to inclement weather and was made up as part of a doubleheader the following day. The Falcons took both seven-inning games by scores of 3-2. Walla Walla salvaged the final game of the set by a 6-3 count.

The Sweets opened the month of July with a series win over the Cowlitz Black Bears. Walla Walla won game one, 13-4, lost the second game 7-6, and emerged victorious on July 4 by a 6-4 tally.

Caulfield continues to rank in the league’s top five in hitting. He is currently fifth with a .369 average. He has four home runs and 18 runs batted in and leads the WCL with 23 stolen bases. Teammate Justin Folz is scratching the surface of the top 10. The Sweets third baseman/designated hitter is at .314 (11th), is tied for the league lead in doubles (10), and has hit two round trippers and driven in 14 runs. Left-handed pitcher Travis Craven is third among WCL pitchers with a 1.44 earned run average. He has thrown 25 innings in nine starts and boasts a 4-to-1 strikeout-to-walk ratio (28 K’s and 7 BB’s).

Victoria’s Frankie Niemann leads the WCL with a .418 batting average (38-for-91) and has a home run and 21 RBI on the season. Parker Bramlett is just one batting-average point behind Folz and has 12 runs driven across. Pitcher Cade Smith, like Craven, has an impressive K-to-BB ratio. He has fanned 27 and doled out seven bases on balls in 29 innings.

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The Knights’ Jake Holcroft is second in the WCL with a .397 batting average. He has a half-dozen doubles, two triples, 25 RBI and 15 stolen bases. Briley Knight is at .357 with four long flies and 27 RBI, and is tied with Folz for the league’s top spot in two-base hits. Two other Corvallis hitters are in the top 10 in batting – Michael Curialle (.333) and Andy Atwood (.323).

All three games between the Sweets and HarbourCats begin at 6:35. The first two games of the Corvallis series will start at 6:30 and the finale is set to commence at 3 p.m.

UPCOMING PROMOTIONS: 7/15 – Bud Light Batting Practice and $1 Del Taco Tacos; 7/16 – Fans in attendance that purchase merchandise in the stadium team store will receive a 40 percent discount.

Six Walla Walla Sweets pitchers combined to strike out 19 batters Saturday night during a 5-2 victory over the Cascade Collegiate League at Borleske Stadium.

Walla Walla concluded the non-West Coast League portion of its 2019 schedule 5-and-0. The franchise is now 39-4 all-time against non-league opponents.

Sweets starting pitcher Chazz Martinez stranded baserunners at first and second in the initial inning of Saturday’s game and struck out two. Third  baseman Justin Folz ended CCL’s threat by snaring a line drive off the bat of Caleb Manuel for out No. 3.

Martinez, a left-hander, ruled in the second inning. He fanned Alex Hussey, Dawson Warner (looking), and Jamey Richardson in succession.

The Sweets produced a two-out run in the bottom of the second. Jordan Stubbings doubled and, after Emanuel Dean was hit by a pitch, scored when Connor Cirillo plopped a single into right field.

Dimick Wood took over for Martinez in the third inning and Alex Ballot greeted him rudely with a lead-off double. He then struck out Alex Schmitz on a called third, but Ballot moved up 90 feet on the play by way of a passed ball. Folz came to the rescue again when he gloved a liner struck by Chase Matheny and stepped on the third-base bag to double off Ballot.

CCL took its only lead of the game in the fourth. Zach Jones led off with a two-base hit and, after Wood struck out Henry Lenaburg, Manuel drove an 0-1 pitch over the left-field wall. Wood regained his cool and K’d Hussey and Warner to close out the inning.

Walla Walla strung three hits together to plate a pair of tallies in the home fourth. Folz and Caleb Farmer both singled, then cruised home on a Stubbings‘ double to right.

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Fellow right-hander Charles Harrison replaced Wood in the fifth inning and got off to a rocky start – hitting Richardson and walking Ballot. But Harrison, in the end, proved to be a portrait of poise. He struck out Schmitz, Matheny, and Jones consecutively to duck any possibility of damage.

POST GAME INTERVIEW WITH CHARLES HARRISON

Patrick Caulfield led off the Walla Walla fifth with a single. He went to second on a Ryan Johnston grounder to third, and scored on a hit to center by Cesar Lopez – one of three base knocks he had in the game.

Lefty Brayde Hirai made his contribution to the Sweets K club when he ended a 1-2-3 top of the sixth by ringing up Hussey swinging.

Johnston moved from second base to the mound in the seventh. He disposed of Warner and Richardson on strikes and, one batter later, retired Schmitz on a fly to center.

The Sweets scored their final run in the seventh. Johnston walked with two out, went to second when Lopez was hit by a pitch, and crossed home plate on an error.

Johnston faced the minimum number of hitters in the eighth. He sat the first two hitters down with third strikes, and Lenaburg hit a comebacker to the hill for the i