ESPARTO — The Clear Lake Cardinals outscored Esparto 40-0 in a non-league varsity baseball doubleheader on Saturday, winning 16-0 and 24-0 in Esparto.
Clear Lake (5-0) hit four home runs in the two games, three of them in the second game that featured a 16-run top of the first inning.
Bryan Edwards, the winning pitcher in game one, was a combined 6-for-10 on the day with a home run and six RBIs. A switch-hitter last season, Edwards is batting exclusively from the left side this year, so far with great effect.
“He had a great day all the way around,” Clear Lake coach Paul Larrea said.
While both games were called after five innings because of the 10-run mercy rule, the Cardinals were able to give all of their pitchers some much-needed work.
“We had only three games coming into the doubleheader, so it was important to get these guys some innings,” Larrea said. “And they all pitched well.”
Edwards worked the first two innings of game one and left with a 9-0 lead. Brandon Disney finished up with three innings of no-hit ball, striking out the side in the fourth and fifth innings.
In game two, winning pitcher Ryan Richardson gave way after the first two innings. Ryan Grady worked the next two innings and Jason Edwards closed it out.
Esparto had only four hits on the day — one in the first game and three in the second.
Tanner Mansell led off the nightcap with a home run, the second time he”s homered leading off a game this season. Jess Phillips (4-for-6, 6 RBIs) added a three-run blast later in the inning.
The Cardinals added three more runs in the top of the second, two scoring on a Tyler Beets homer.
Phillips, Richardson and Bryan Edwards all had four hits in the second game.
The Cardinals host Kelseyville today at 4 p.m.
In other baseball action Saturday:
Ferndale 6, Kelseyville 3
Ferndale 9, Kelseyville 4
At Kelseyville, the Kelseyville Knights owned leads in both of their games against the Ferndale Wildcats only to drop both in non-league action at Lloyd Larson Field.
Kelseyville was one out away from a 3-2 victory in game one when the Wildcats scored on a two-out double in the top of the seventh against starting pitcher Blake Sedrick.
“He pitched seven solid innings,” Kelsey-ville coach Lou Poloni said. “Blake has just been a pleasant surprise.
Knotted at 3 going to the bottom of the seventh, Ethan Rohner led off with a double but the Knights (2-3) couldn”t advance him. Ferndale then took the lead for good with three runs in the top of the eighth against reliever Max Huff.
“We had a lot of chances,” Poloni said of some missed scoring opportunities.
The Knights made several strong plays in the field in game one, according to Poloni, who cited the glove work of Jared Wagner at second base, Ryan Cockerton at third, and Blake Buchanan and Steven Grossner in the outfield.
Blake Panos went 3-for-4 with a RBI to lead the Knights at the plate and Huff went 2-for-4 with a double.
In the second game, the Knights twice took the lead on home runs — Mike DeGregorio”s two-run bomb to right-center field in the bottom of the third made it 2-1 and Buchanan”s two-run blast in the fourth gave Kelseyville a 4-3 lead — but the Wildcats pushed in front to stay with a five-run top of the fifth.
James Slade homered in both games for Ferndale (3-0), including a two-run shot in the top of the fourth of game two.
“They swing it,” Poloni said of the Ferndale batting order. “They”re a playoff-type team. They”re going to give the teams up there some trouble.”
Panos, working in relief of starter DeGregorio, took the loss in the second game. Panos added three more hits to complete a 6-for-8 day at the plate.
Kelseyville plays Clear Lake in Lakeport today, hits the road again Wednesday to take on St. Helena, and returns home Thursday to play Cloverdale.
All three games begin at 4 p.m.
