Prep baseball: Big innings lifts Warriors

June 1, 2007

By Jeremiah Bartz/ Frontiersman

PALMER - On Tuesday night the Wasilla Warriors snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, blowing a nine-run lead in a extra-inning loss to Colony.

But on Wednesday, Wasilla had its chance to play spoiler.

The Warriors scored nine runs in the sixth inning to post a 13-7 come-from-behind win over the Palmer Moose at Hermon Brothers Field, a victory that helped ease the pain of a 10-9 extra-inning loss to Colony the night before.

&#8220That's the nicest win,” Warrior skipper Gene Sandone said after the win. &#8220We were asleep for about five innings.”

If the Moose did catch Wasilla napping, the Warriors certainly awoke from their slumber in the sixth, putting 10 consecutive hitters on base and moving nine straight runners across home plate.

&#8220We started getting more aggressive on base, and came up with the one-out rally,” said senior Danny Lyles, who drove in a run with a bases loaded infield single in the inning.

Lyles and Chris Bydlon posted consecutive run-scoring infield singles with the bases loaded in the inning. Both sent shots to the left corner of the infield that handcuffed Palmer third baseman Mike Dotson.

&#8220Those were tough on the third baseman,” Sandone said. &#8220They've really got to be about perfect to get it back to the plate.”

Wasilla started the one-out rally by drawing three consecutive walks, and Lyles and Bydland followed with singles.

Mike Shaw and Corey Cowgill continued the Wasilla surge with back-to-back two-run doubles to left field.

Reserve Justin Sage capped the inning with a bases-clearing triple.

&#8220They kept hitting and hitting and hitting,” Sandone said.

Bydlon, Wasilla's lead-off hitter, led the Warriors with three singles. Shaw, Cowgill, Lyles and Eric Washington finished with two hits each.

Bydlon, Lyles, Ben Briceland and Carl Brent each scored twice for WHS.

Led a strong pitching effort from senior Derek Eley, Palmer carried a 5-1 lead into the fifth inning. Eley struck out three, walked only two and didn't allow a Wasilla run until the fourth inning.

The Warriors were able to burn Eley for three runs in the fifth before Palmer head coach David Combs opted for senior Tyson Alger on the mound.

&#8220Derek pitched a really good game, but he ran out of gas,” Combs said.

Tanner Grover and Ketih Christopher helped the Moose get to the early lead.

Christopher's soft infield single drove in Doug Lite to give the Moose the 2-0 lead, and Grover doubled home T.J. Fullmer in the third to give the Moose the 5-0 advantage.

Christopher collected a pair of hits and two RBI, while Grover double twice and scored two runs.

Alger led the Moose with three hits.

Palmer and Wasilla each have one game left this season, both facing Colony in their season finales.

The Moose meet Colony in the annual wood bat game today at Hermon Brothers Field at 6 p.m., while the Warriors host the Knights at 1 p.m. Saturday at Carl Fritzler Field in Wasilla.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.

Wasilla

name ab r h bi

Bydlon 5 2 3 1

Shaw 5 1 2 2

Cowgill 5 1 1 2

Brent 3 2 1 0

Washington 4 1 2 1

McLellan 2 0 0 0

-Wisdom 0 1 0 0

S. Graber 3 1 0 0

Briceland 0 2 0 0

Rodamer 1 0 0 0

Lyles 3 2 2 2

Sage 1 0 1 2

Totals 32 13 12 10

Palmer

name ab r h bi

Grover 4 2 2 1

Ca. Smith 3 0 1 0

Christopher 3 0 2 2

Dotson 2 0 0 0

Alger 5 0 3 0

Co. Smith 4 1 1 0

Ratcliff 4 2 3 0

Lite 4 1 2 0

Fullmer 3 1 0 0

Totals 32 7 14 3

Wasilla 000 139 0 - 13

Palmer 023 011 0 - 7

E - Wasilla 4, Palmer 1; LOB - Wasilla 5, Palmer 13; 2B - Shaw, Cowgill, Washington, Grover (2), Ca. Smith, Alger; 3B - Sage, Co. Smith; SB - Bydlin (3), Cowgill, Washington, Briceland, Brent, Ratcliff, Lite; CS - Ca. Smith.

Palmer IP H R ER BB SO

Eley 4 1/35 4 4 2 3

Alger (L) 1 3 6 6 3 0

Co. Smith 2/3 3 3 3 1 0

Ca Smith 1 1 0 0 1 1

Wasilla IP H R ER BB SO

Shaw 2 6 3 3 3 1

Lyles (w) 3 4 3 3 2 1

Briceland 2 2 1 1 0 2

HBP - Christopher by Shaw, Grover by Briceland; WP - Shaw, Briclenad Eley,

Alger