13 July 2010

Ashland batters were stymied for most of their at bats today, with the exception of a 6-run 3rd inning in which they came alive. Bend South batters on the other hand ripped the ball quite effectively, almost without regard for the quality of the Ashland pitching, which was excellent.  Bend South had 15 hits, seventeen runs and left 10 runners on base. Ashland had 6 runs on 7 hits and left 6 runners on base.

In the first inning Bend South scored 6 runs and set the tone for the game. Max Longshore made a diving catch behind second base and another stellar diving grab of a ground ball for two of the three outs in the first inning.

In the top of the second John Ropp of Ashland struck out two Bend South batters with the bases loaded to keep them scoreless that inning. Evan McLennan came in to close out the third with two strikeouts. Unfortunately Bend South was up 12-nothing by that point. He struck out the first four batters and five of the eight batters that he faced.

The bottom of the third was an exciting one for Ashland. Max Longshore ran out a comebacker to the pitcher for a lead off single. Evan McLennan moved him to second with a ground out down the line to first base. Matthew O'Donnell followed that with a powerful line drive to right center that landed him on third and scored Longshore. Isaiah Titus singled to left scoring O'Donnell. Then Titus moved to third on successive stolen bases while Julian Rice walked on five pitches.  Hayden Brooke took a tough at bat with a few foul offs to earn another walk to load the bases.

With John Ropp up, a wild pitch gave Titus the opportunity to score while Rice and Brooke moved to third and second, respectively.  Then Ropp walked to load the bases again, followed by another walk to Kellar Edwards that scored Mr. Rice. Max Longshore then came up as the Ashland team batted through the line up, promptly lining a single that scored Brooke. John Ropp, hustling to score from second, was thrown out at the plate in a very close play to end the inning.

Both teams' offenses fell quiet for the most part after that, with Ashland batter going down 1-2-3 in the final inning to close out the game. Final score, Bend South 17, Ashland 6.

Matthew O'Donnell was 1 for 2 with 2 RBIs. Max Longshore was 2 for 3 with one RBI.

Next up, Ashland plays Gresham on Wednesday, July 14 at 7:30 under the lights of Lents Field in Portland.  The state tournament is double-elimination, so a win tomorrow leads to another game on Thursday while loss means a trip home Ashland.