Hawks top Bulldogs in championship game
SANDPOINT — Sandpoint did a number of things right Friday in the 4A Region 1 baseball championship at War Memorial Field, including scoring two or more runs in five innings, ripping 13 hits and jumping out to an early 6-3 lead.
But it was what the Bulldogs didn’t do so well, namely throw strikes, that proved their undoing, walking 12 Lakeland batters en route to a season-ending and disappointing 17-13 loss.
The Hawks (13-11), who concluded a spate of seven games in seven days, scored a whopping 12 runs in the top of the fourth, including seven bases loaded walks and a hit batter. The big inning seemed to knock the wind out of Sandpoint (13-9), and helped the Hawks cap an improbable run to state after winning six of their last seven games.
“Our team learned to play baseball this week,” said relieved Lakeland coach Jason Bradbury, whose team took two of three from Sandpoint this week.
The Bulldogs jumped out to an early 6-3 lead heading into the top of the fourth, and appeared in control before things quickly began to unravel. An unusually tiny strike zone by the home plate umpire — by both coach’s admission — led to a barrage of walks and runs. By the time Sandpoint got the third out of the frame, the score was 15-6 and they were using their fourth pitcher.
“You give that many free bases up and that’s (12 runs) what is going to happen,” said Sandpoint head coach Chris Young. “We just had a tough time finding the dish early in the game. You never like to blame the ump, but I felt like we were getting squeezed.”
Joel Cramer hit his second homer in as many games, and along with Ben Fisher and Daniel Charvoz collected three hits on the day for Sandpoint, which out-hit the Hawks 13-9 in defeat. Charvoz, who along with Cramer and Fisher were playing their final game as Bulldogs, added four RBIs and two stolen bases.
Young said it was going to be tough to lose all three of those seniors, and was proud of how his squad fought until the last out.
“The kids could have folded, but they played all seven,” said Young. “I tip my hat to Lakeland, they played great defense.”
Daniel Mobeck ripped two doubles, and Tyler Ogden and Caleb Guerber each added two hits for the Hawks, who return to state after a fourth place finish in 2008.
Lakeland 210 (12)20 0 — 17 9 2
Sandpoint 330 320 2 —13 13 5
Daniel Whitesitt, Gaige Gray (2), Kostas Garcia (5) and Luke Howell; Eric Nikssarian, Tevin Hamilton (2), Tyler Gordon (4), Joel Cramer (4), Ben Fisher (5) and Cory Neer, Nikssarian (2). W — Gaige Gray. L — Hamilton (3-3).
HITS: LL — Mobeck 2, Ogden 2, Guerber 2, Cooper, South, Vandever. Spt — Halpin, Fisher 3, Cramer 3, Charvoz 3, Jacobs, Neer, Anthony. 2B — Mobeck 2, Cramer, Jacobs, Fisher. HR — Cramer.