Carson bats go silent in 1-0 loss

RENO — Despite outhitting North Valleys 6-2, the Carson High softball team dropped a 1-0 heartbreaker Thursday afternoon in a crossover game.

Carson went 0-9 with runners in scoring position and stranded 10 runners. The lack of offense wasted a nice pitching performance by Jen Purcell, who allowed two hits and walked just two batters in a losing effort. She retired 10 of the last 11 batters she faced.

North Valleys scored the only run of the game when Valerie Quam tripled and scored on a passed ball. The Panthers did re-load the bases, but Purcell worked out of that jam and didn’t allow a hit over the final five innings.

Carson left runners on second and third in the first inning, first and second in the second inning, a runner on second in the fourth inning, second and third in the fifth inning and a runner on second in the sixth inning. The chances were certainly there, but North Valleys’ Bailee Glover managed to wiggle out of jams every inning. She allowed six hits and struck out seven batters.

Carson got a hit each from Bailey Allen, Skye Simpson, Kandis Tuttle, Purcell, Rebecka Breuer and Michelle Perry.

Carson hosts Wooster in a doubleheader starting at 10 a.m. Saturday.

BASEBALL

MANOGUE 8, DOUGLAS 7

RENO — The Douglas baseball team fell just short after a furious seventh-inning rally Thursday afternoon, losing 8-7 to Manogue.

Douglas had managed to cross five runs in the final frame, bringing the potential tying run to the plate, but Manogue induced a pop fly to end the game.

“It was a serious comeback there at the end,” Douglas coach Bruce Jacobsen said. “We had a couple errors early on that cost us. Those were some spots where maybe we don’t allow them to build as much of a lead and we’re looking at a different story. The kids played well though and the offense started to pick up. We were glad to see that and it’s something to build on.”

Douglas saw its in-league losing streak slide to four games with a doubleheader at Spanish Springs looming on Saturday.

The Tigers faced off against Manogue All-American pitcher Devonte German to start and fared well.

“He’s as advertised,” Jacobsen said of the 6-5, 240-pound right hander. “That’s a potential Major League draft pick.”

The Tigers found a way to get at him early, though.

Douglas center fielder Dusty Fisher drew a leadoff walk and a one-out single from Chase White later put runners on first and third. Nolan Weintz singled Fisher home, leaving runner on first and second. Sophomore Cale Kynett then stepped to the plate and battled through a 10-pitch at bat. Douglas sent the runners on the following pitch and Kynett belted an apparent two-run double down the line, but the play was waved off on a balk call on German.

“It’s just one of those crazy things about baseball,” Jacobsen said. “A balk in high school automatically kills the play. It’s something that in this case worked against us, but that’s the rules. That’s a situation where we potentially go up 3-0 on a really good pitcher, but at that point we have to keep trying to plug away and it didn’t happen.”

Manogue got out of the inning without further damage and German settled in, allowing just one run through the next five innings.

Meanwhile, the Miners capitalized on a few Douglas miscues on defense, leading to back-to-back four-run innings.

The Miners carried an 8-2 lead into the top of the seventh. German gave way to the Miner bullpen and Douglas got back to work on the scoreboard.

Cody Carter walked, Fisher singled and Chase White singled to bring Carter home.

Weintz later hit a three-run home run with one out and Kynett belted a two-run home run with two outs to draw Douglas to within one.