CLOVERDALE — Jon Hawkins’ two-out, two-run double in the top of the seventh inning lifted the Middletown Mustangs to a second straight North Central League I varsity baseball win, a 7-5 victory over the Cloverdale Eagles on Tuesday afternoon in Cloverdale.
Hawkins then wiggled out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the seventh to secure the pitching victory with two innings of shutout relief as the Mustangs squared their league record at 2-2 while improving to 2-7 overall.
“We had some mental mistakes and made some errors, but we pulled through,” Middletown head coach Tyler Holt said. “We’re starting to come around and play the way that we can play.”
Middletown trailed 5-3 after five innings. The Mustangs tied the game in the top of the sixth on a Chase Schuster RBI infield single and Aiden de Jong’s sacrifice fly. In the seventh, the Mustangs’ winning rally began with two outs and the bases empty. Cisco Howland drew a walk, stole second and advanced to third on Troy Taber’s infield single. Taber stole second base before Hawkins connected on a 1-0 pitch.
“He found a pitch he liked and ripped it (to right field),” Holt said.
Cloverdale made it interesting in the bottom of the seventh. Hawkins allowed a leadoff double but got the very next batter on a comebacker. After getting the second out on a strikeout, Hawkins issued back-to-back walks to load the bases. The game ended on a popup that shortstop Hunter Hartzog tracked down behind third base.
Hawkins, Hartzog and Taber finished with two hits apiece. Hartzog pitched the first five innings, leaving the game with the scored tied at 3. He struck out seven and walked five.
Middletown shoots for a third straight league win Friday at home against Willits.
In other NCL I baseball action Tuesday:
St. Helena 4, Lower Lake 1
At St. Helena, Justice Penterman of the Saints and Jordan John of the Lower Lake Trojans hooked up in a good old-fashioned pitching duel won by St. Helena.
“Both went the distance, it was a hell of game,” Lower Lake head coach Mark Peterson said.
John nursed a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the sixth inning when St. Helena (4-2, 6-8) scored all four of its runs, the first two on Penterman’s bloop single into right field with the bases loaded.
“He just stuck the bat out, almost a check swing,” Peterson said of Penterman’s go-ahead hit.
So dominant were Penterman and John on the mound that the two teams combined for a total of five hits.
“John had 71 pitches through six innings,” Peterson said.
Penterman needed only 19 pitches to navigate the last three innings — five in the fifth, eight in the sixth and six in the seventh. John was economical with his pitches as well.
“He threw eight in the first, eight in the second, 11 in the third, six in the fourth and 12 in the fifth,” Peterson said.
“Those guys were dealing,” Peterson added.
Lower Lake (1-5, 5-6) took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth. Jett Guralas led off with a double, one of only two Lower Lake hits. Jordan O’Keefe’s sacrifice bunt advanced him to third and Guralas scored on John’s groundout to shortstop.
Both teams hit the ball hard at times but had little to show for it, according to Peterson.
“The wind was holding everything up. Both teams also played great defense,” Peterson said.
Charles Jones singled for Lower Lake’s only other hit.
Fort Bragg 10, Clear Lake 0 (5 inn.)
At Fort Bragg, the Clear Lake Cardinals (2-3, 4-5) were no-hit by Fort Bragg’s Derek Sanchez in their five-inning loss to the Fort Bragg Timberwolves (3-1, 5-5).
It was Clear Lake’s first trip back to the Mendocino County coast since the death of their head coach, Ed Pepper, who collapsed and later died at an area hospital back on March 16 right before the Cardinals’ first-round game against Arcata in the Fort Bragg Tournament.
“It was a weird game. We weren’t right,” Clear Lake coach Brian Horne said.
Four Clear Lake pitchers combined to walk eight and hit 10 Fort Bragg batters.
The Timberwolves staked Sanchez to a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning and added to their lead from there, getting three runs in the third, two in the fourth and one in the fifth, which ended the game because of the 10-run mercy rule.
“We had the same problem with the kid (Sanchez) last year,” Horne said. “We didn’t make the adjustments we needed to.”
Sanchez struck out five and walked three. He got most of his outs on softly hit grounders to second base and shortstop.
No one came close to getting a hit, according to Horne.
“Not really,” Horne said.
Clear Lake starter Cody Hayes took the loss, going 1 1/3 innings. Jacob Horne, Johnny Gonzales and AJ Bruch followed him to the mound.
The Cardinals host St. Helena on Friday at 4 p.m.
“Hopefully we can turn the page,” Horne said.
Kelseyville at Willits
NCL I leader Kelseyville (5-0, 8-5) was scheduled to play at Willits on Tuesday but that game has been moved to Wednesday at 4 p.m.
P
