Baseball
Raiders blank North Valleys, win fourth straight
By Brian Walther, reporting intern
Behind the strong pitching of senior Cameron Beard, and the 10 runs of support his offense provided, Reed rolled North Valleys 10-0 at home in five innings on Thursday afternoon.
Beard scattered four hits and struck out four without issuing a walk in five shutout innings as the Raiders improved to 10-14, 7-7 with their fourth-straight victory. They moved into a three-way tie (with Douglas and McQueen) for seventh place in the 4A North.
North Valleys sunk to 8-15, 2-12.
“Beard threw very well today,” Reed head coach Levi Matherly said. “He wanted to start and he’s pitched well for us this year. We’ve got four games this week so we needed an extra guy and he came and did what he was supposed to do.”
Senior Lincoln Turner (3-for-3, RBI, run) and junior Tanner Clabaugh (3-for-3, RBI, two runs) held it down offensively for the Raiders.
Clabaugh lead off the first inning with a double followed by a single from Turner to quickly put the Raiders up 1-0.
Reed broke things open in the fourth inning scoring three more runs courtesy of a Caleb Ariaz RBI triple scoring Miah Harmon (2-for-3, double, run) and RBI singles from Ryan Murphy (1-for-2, run) and Clabaugh.
“I liked our approaches,” Matherly said. “The kids hit the ball hard in the middle of the field and that’s what you’ve got to do.”
Kameron Soubiea (2-for-3, two RBIs, two runs) added to the Raiders’ lead with a two-run double in the fourth inning to make it 9-0.
Harmon scored on an error in the fifth inning to make it 10-0, ending the game after five innings.
Reed will go to Reno (20-4, 11-3) in a doubleheader on Saturday. The first game begins at 11 a.m.
Cougs rout Lancers for sixth straight
Spanish Springs kept pace with Reno to remain in a first-place tie on Thursday afternoon with a dominating 15-0 home win over McQueen in five innings.
The rout came two days after the Cougs (15-4, 11-3) raked out 18 hits in a 14-6 victory at McQueen (10-14, 7-7).
Jordan Santos picked up the win on the bump, scattering five hits and striking out two in a four-inning complete-game effort.
Josh Prizina went 2-for-4 with a home run, four RBIs and two runs scored. His three-run shot in the bottom of the first that put the home team up 3-0 was the Cougs’ lone extra-base hit of the afternoon.
Marlin Brucato also did his batting average a favor, going 3-for-4 with three RBIs and scoring twice.
Spanish Springs will put its six-game winning streak on the line Saturday when it hosts North Valleys (8-15, 2-12) for a doubleheader starting at 11 a.m.
Softball
Raiders keep rolling
Reed’s winning streak reached 16 games on Thursday afternoon with a 13-1 five-inning rout at Carson
The Raiders moved to 21-2-1, 11-2 while the Senators lowered to 6-15, 5-6.
Jessica Sellers (3-for-3, home run, double, two RBIs, four runs) and Allie Hughes (3-for-4, home run, two RBIs, three runs) both deposited pitches beyond the outfield fence in the win.
Julia Jensen earned the win in the circle, striking out 12 and allowing one run on three hits in a five-inning complete game. At the plate, Jensen went 2-for-4 with a double, four RBIs and she scored once.
The Raiders outhit the Senators, 17-3.
A pivotal doubleheader at Reno awaits Reed on Saturday. Game one is slated for 11 a.m.
Spanish Springs sneaks past Douglas in nine
The Cougars were unable to hold onto a 6-0 lead on Thursday afternoon in Minden, but pushed three across in the ninth inning and escaped with a 10-9 win.
With the win, Spanish Springs (19-5, 11-2) remained tied with Reed for first place in the 4A North. Douglas tumbled to 5-8 in league meetings, good for eighth place.
The Tigers blasted three round trippers in defeat.
Spanish Springs will be at home on Saturday for a double dip with North Valleys.