By: Burke De Boer sports editor
Wolves baseball swept St. Martin’s and then split a pair of doubleheaders with Central Washington, remaining top of the GNAC after the week’s six games.
The April 26 games against St. Martin’s were played on neutral ground in Portland’s Porter Park, where the Wolves won 5-3 and 5-1.
In bottom of the first game’s eighth inning, the game was tied at 3-3. Junior Nyles Nygaard hit a double to score senior Joey Crunkilton, for Crunkilton’s second score of the game. Nygaard was shortly batted in by sophomore Justin Wakem for the two point lead.
St. Martin’s never threatened in the second game, as junior pitcher Brady Miller recorded eight strikeouts and gave up only one run while pitching a complete game.
On April 28, the Wolves faced the Central Washington Wildcats in Ellensburg, Washington. The number two team in the conference, the Wildcats had a lot to gain from defeating the Wolves. On the first day of competition, the Wolves were able to prove why they’re top in the standings, winning 6-4 and 11-7.
Wakem and junior Garrett Anderson each recorded three hits and two RBIs in the first game, and Crunkilton hit his second home run of the season.
The second game featured four lead changes as the offenses went back and forth in the later innings. Junior Cody Dykstra scored on a wild pitch for the lead in the eighth inning. Nygaard then singled to bat in junior Jacob Martinez.
Nygaard went on to steal second and third base before being batted in, along with first-year student Torreahno Sweet, off a Wakem single.
The second day of action in Ellensburg was tougher on the Wolves, who lost 11-13 and 6-8.
The two games were massive scoring affairs. In the last two frames of the first game, a total of 12 runs were scored.
At the start of the eighth inning, the Wolves trailed 5-7, with the game still in reach, when Central Washington put up six runs on first-year pitcher Justin Doleful.
The Wolves answered with six runs of their own, including a three-run homer from junior Jay Leverett. But it wasn’t enough. Justin Wakem, who had previously scored two runs and an RBI, struck out swinging to end the game.
Late-inning drama again unfolded in the day’s second game; the Wolves went up 6-2 only to give up six more runs and fall again.
The Wolves maintain their top spot in the conference, with four games left to play before the playoffs begin on May 10.
Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu
