KELSEYVILLE — The Kelseyville Knights beat the Fortuna Huskies 8-7 and 6-5 in a non-league doubleheader to open a new varsity baseball season on Saturday afternoon at Lloyd Larson Field in Kelseyville.
Adrian Villalobos and Chase Larsen each went 3-for-4 with two RBIs in the first game. Kelseyville (2-0) scored three times in the bottom of the fourth inning to erase a 5-4 deficit and held on for the victory.
Nathan Phillips pitched 4 1/3 innings in relief of starter Tyler Linnell to notch the victory.
“Phillips sucked it up pretty good for us,” Kelseyville head coach Lou Poloni said.
In game two, Linnell’s bloop single down the left-field with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning scored Villalobos to snap a 5-all tie and give the Knights the sweep.
Villalobos worked 1 1/3 innings in relief for the victory. Cooper Goff went 3-for-4 with a RBI and sophomore Jeremy Brown (2-for-3) knocked in four runs with a pair of two-out, two-run singles.
“I thought our composure was outstanding,” Poloni said of his team’s first effort of the season.
With several Kelseyville regulars out of action with injuries, two sophomores made major contributions on Saturday, namely Brown and Larsen.
“You never know what you’re going to get from those guys,” Poloni said. “It was pretty much sophomore day for us.”
Brown pitched 5 2/3 innings in game two before being replaced by Villalobos. He struck out four and walked two.
Weather permitting, Kelseyville is scheduled to host Healdsburg on Wednesday at 4 p.m.
