After largely slugging its way past the competition through the first four games of league play, the Douglas baseball showed Thursday it can grind its way to a win as well.
Nolan Weintz pitched a complete game, striking out seven and walking two, to lead Douglas to a 5-1 win over Wooster in Minden.
Douglas moved to 9-1 overall and 4-0 in Northern Division I play, remaining tied for first place with Reno.
“Nolan really did a nice job today,” Douglas coach Bruce Jacobsen said. “He gave us seven strong innings, gave up one run in the second inning. That’s going to win you a lot of games in this league.”
Offensively, Douglas collected just two extra-base hits and had to manufacture the majority of it runs in the win.
Dusty Fisher set the tone for the afternoon, leading the bottom of the first off by roping a triple into deep center. Wooster misplayed the throw back into the infield, which allowed Fisher to score, giving the Tigers the early 1-0 lead.
Wooster tied the game up with a run in the top of the second, but Douglas answered right back.
Teddy Mason reached on a fielder’s choice that forced Dillon Lopez out at second. Mason later moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a line-drive single from Chase White.
Fisher led off the bottom of the third drawing a walk. He moved to third on a blown pickoff attempt by Wooster and he scored on a double from Jimmy King.
Kaleb Foster was then hit by a pitch and Nolan Weintz lined out to center, which allowed King to move to third.
From there, Dillon Lopez set down a squeeze bunt that brought King home for the 4-1 lead.
The Tigers’ final run of the game came in the fifth inning, when Lopez hit a grounder single to score Foster from second.
Douglas wraps up the series with Wooster in Reno Saturday at 11 a.m.
SOFTBALL
CARSON BLANKED
BY RENO, 4-0
Reno scored three in the third and added one more in the fifth en route to a 4-0 win over the Senators Thursday afternoon.
Carson managed just two hits, one each by losing pitcher Jen Purcell and one by Skye Simpson.
Purcell, who scattered eight hits, deserve a better fate. The Senators made four errors which led to three unearned runs.
Carson had several opportunities to break through, but couldn’t come up with any clutch two-out hits.
In the third, Ellyse McGowan walked and moved to third on a double by Purcell. Kandis Tuttle grounded out to end the inning. In the fourth, an error and walk put runners on first and second. Bailey Allen fanned to end the threat. In the fifth, Carson put runners at first and second, but filed again to push across a run. In the sixth, Carson had two runners on and didn’t score.
DOUGLAS LOSES 7-3
MINDEN — Sadye Roulund-Jacobs and Aubrene Blas each homered and doubled to lead Spanish Springs to a win over Douglas in a crossover game Thursday afternoon. Jacobs drove in three runs and Blas two.
The loss dropped Douglas to 5-3 overall and 0-1 in league.
Katie Kluever and Leonna Mortimer collected two hits and an RBI apiece. Mortimer homered, while Kelly Sonneman doubled.
Brette Lawrence scattered eight hits to get the win in the circle. Kali Sargent allowed 10 hits and fanned six in the loss.
WNC TEAMS AT HOME
THIS WEEKEND
The Western Nevada College softball and baseball teams will have their work cut out for them this weekend as they each welcome the Scenic West Athletic Conference first-place teams.
The WNC baseball team will try to continue its upward movement against conference-leading College of Southern of Nevada. WNC brings a four-game SWAC winning streak into the four-game series at John L. Harvey Field.
In third-place (6-6) in the SWAC, WNC will try to close ground on the Coyotes, who are 11-1. Doubleheaders start at noon today and Saturday.
After winning seven of their past eight games, coach D.J. Whittemore and his Wildcats are looking forward to the challenge of facing the No. 4-ranked team in the latest National Junior College Athletic Association poll.
“We are going to use this weekend as a measuring stick to see where we stack up with the best team in the conference and hopefully prove to ourselves that we can play with them over a four-game series,” Whittemore said.
The WNC softball team, winners of eight of its past 12 home games, hosts the College of Southern Idaho Golden Eagles today and Saturday at Edmonds Sports Complex. Friday’s doubleheader starts at 1 p.m., and the teams will play two on Saturday beginning at noon.
WNC stands in fifth place in the SWAC standings with an 8-15 record. CSI is tied for first place with Salt Lake at 19-1.
