MIDDLETOWN — During a span of five pitches in the bottom of the third inning, the Middletown Mustangs jumped out to a 4-0 lead en route to a 7-1 non-league victory over the Lick-Wilmerding Tigers of San Francisco on Friday afternoon at Wes Martin Field.
Will Aden (2-for-4) connected for a towering three-run home run over the oak tree in center field to put the Mustangs (4-0) on the scoreboard. Four pitches later Cameron Luis (3-for-4) lined a home run to center field to make it 4-0.
Aden’s home run was struck so well it landed on Bill Foltmer Field where members of the Middletown track team were working out.
“Over the tree and onto the football field,” Middletown head coach Jon Hoogendoorn said.
Six of Middletown’s 15 hits went for extra bases. Tyler Crudo doubled twice, Aidan Skinner went 2-for-3 with a double and a RBI, and Isaac Perez went 1-for-3 with a double and a RBI. Tanner Pachie went 2-for-2.
Middletown’s pitching was just as impressive. Aden worked five scoreless innings for the victory, allowing just three hits and no walks while striking out 10. Jimmy Rockwell finished up, allowing three hits and a run with five strikeouts and one walk.
“We’re just hitting full stride with those guys,” Hoogendoorn said of Aden and Rockwell, who were late joining the team because of their participation in basketball. However, both are baseball veterans for the Mustangs.
“Those two have played a lot of baseball,” Hoogendoorn added.
Middletown will try for its fifth straight win to open the season Tuesday at home against Upper Lake at 4 p.m. The Mustangs play their first road game March 14 at Fortuna.
In junior varsity action Friday, Middletown beat the Lower Lake Trojans 13-1 in a five-inning, non-league game at Middletown. Dax Green pitched four innings for the victory, limiting Lower Lake to two hits and an unearned run while striking out seven and walking one.
Noah Williams sparked the Mustangs (5-1) at the plate, going 3-for-3 with two doubles and four RBIs. Bryan Riel added two more hits, scored twice, drove in three runs and stole three bases.
Middletown had a 9-0 lead before Lower Lake scored in the bottom of the third.
Lower Lake statistics were not reported.
The Mustangs are off until March 14 when they travel to Fortuna for a noon game against the Huskies.
In other baseball action Friday:
Esparto 9, Upper Lake 6
At Esparto, the Upper Lake Cougars took a 6-4 lead into the bottom of the sixth, but the Esparto Trojans rallied for five runs to win this non-league game. A two-run home run capped Esparto’s scoring in the inning.
“That sealed it,” Upper Lake head coach Brian Milhaupt said. “It was our game to win, but sometimes it happens.”
Upper Lake starting pitcher Dalton Slater worked into the sixth before finally giving way to reliever Diego Velasco.
“Dalton Slater was pitching a great game and I let him go one inning more and they caught up to his timing,” Milhaupt said.
Slater allowed nine hits and seven runs in 5 1/3 innings, striking out eight and walking one. Velasco allowed the two-run homer.
Upper Lake pounded out 14 hits led by Velasco (4-for-4, RBI), Jonathan Thiessen (3-for-3, double, two RBIs), Rocco Bassignani (2-for-4, double) and Slater (2-for-4).
“It was a great game, by far the best game we’ve played all season,” Milhaupt said as the Cougars fell to 2-3.
In a non-league played Thursday at Upper Lake, the Cougars beat Potter Valley 9-7 behind three hits apiece from Thiessen and Slater. Bradley Sneathen added two hits and two RBIs while Russell Gordon had a hit and two RBIs.
Cody Banks, working in relief of Sneathen, pitched four innings for the victory, striking out four and walking eight.
“We didn’t play our best baseball, but we came out with the W,” Milhaupt said.
The Cougars play three games on the road next week – Tuesday at Middletown, Thursday at Potter Valley and Friday against Clear Lake in Lakeport.
