Carson settles for split against Wooster

RENO -- There's no denying it, despite all of the highlights for the Carson High baseball team -- and there were many -- one inning made the Senators' day a somewhat disappointing one.

Carson made four errors in one inning and six for the game in a 12-11 loss at Wooster on Saturday in the opener of a doubleheader. The Senators came back for a 10-2 win in the nightcap.

The Senators banged out 23 hits, received outstanding pitching performances from Mike Handley and Jared Wulff, got outstanding offensive days from Owen Brolsma, Jesse Rasner and Eric Melendez -- and settled for a split.

"I'm not happy and I would hope they were not happy," Carson coach Ron McNutt said. "We had 23 hits and won one ball game.

"We had every chance in the world to win the game and we just didn't do it. We should have walked out of her with two and we didn't. It was just very discouraging."

Carson did take command of the race for second in the Sierra League by winning two-of-three in the series from Wooster. The Senators are now 7-2 in league while the Colts are 3-3.

But the loss in the opener will make it that much harder for Carson to catch Reno in the race for the league title. "We've just got our work cut out for us now," McNutt said.

Wooster could help out Carson's cause when it faces Reno. "I don't think anybody better take Wooster lightly," McNutt said.

Starting pitcher Ryan Henry deserved a better fate for Carson in the opener. Seven of the 12 runs Wooster scored were unearned.

The four errors in the second inning led to six runs. Two of the errors came when Carson botched an attempted rundown play by Wooster when it had runners at first and third, allowing a run to score.

"The first game, the one inning, we made some stupid errors and it cost us the game at the end," Brolsma said.

"And we looked lousy doing it," McNutt said.

After the Colts took a 6-2 lead, the Senators came back to tie the score 6-6 in the fourth.

Willie Bowman doubled and Aaron Henry singled him home. Rasner followed with a single and then Tony Teixeira belted an RBI double. Mike Handley then hit an RBI single and Teixeira eventually scored on a balk to make it 6-6.

But Wooster needed only one hit -- a two-run double -- to take a 10-6 lead in the bottom of the fourth. The Colts also took advantage of five walks and five hit batsmen in the opener.

Carson, though, came back again to take an 11-10 lead in the seventh. The highlight came on Brolsma's three-run home run over the centerfield fence.

Bowman followed with a single and with two runners on and on an 0-2 count, Rasner came through with a two-run single to give the Senators an 11-10 lead. But it wasn't meant to be as Iain Dykins, who had five RBIs, came through with the game-winning hit in the bottom of the seventh.

"We battled back and made it interesting at the end," Brolsma said.

Rasner had three hits, Bowman, Aaron Henry and Brolsma all had two hits, Neil Holmes doubled and Jon Teeter added a hit for Carson. Wulff didn't allow an earned run on one hit while striking out three over 2 2/3 innings.

"He went in and threw strikes," McNutt said. "He just did a great job for us."

In the nightcap, Handley pitched a complete-game three hitter, striking out five. He retired the side in order in the first, second, fifth and sixth and worked out of trouble in the third and fourth.

Handley replaced Scott DeFriez, who missed his start due to a violation of team policy.

In the fourth, Brolsma relaxed in his chair and sat on a 3-2 curve, driving it over the 4A State Champs 2002 sign in left field for a two-run shot that gave Carson a 2-0 lead.

"I'm just feeling a lot more comfortable at the plate right now," Brolsma said.

In the fifth, Teeter knocked an RBI double off the right field fence, highlighting a four-run rally that gave Carson a 6-1 lead. The Senators scored four more runs in the seventh to take a 10-1 lead. Bowman tripled and scored on an RBI single by Eric Melendez and Rasner had a two-run double during the rally.

"Jesse Rasner had a great day at the plate," McNutt said.

Melendez had three hits and Cameron Leck, John Parmenter and Teixeira each added a hit.

"We did a good job of coming back in the second game," McNutt said. "Mike Handley threw awfully well. Those are the positive things."