Late deficits don’t seem to faze a local baseball team one bit.
The Chancho’s stormed back from a 6-2 fifth-inning deficit en route to a wild 10-9 victory over the Tucson (Arizona) Moondogs on Day 2 of the American Legion Class AA Region 8 Tournament, which is being contested in Fairfield, California.
The Chanco’s, composed primarily of recent Bear River, Mountain Crest and Ridgeline graduates, also prevailed in nailbiting fashion in their tourney opener as they plated all three of their runs in the bottom of the seventh in a come-from-behind 3-2 Wednesday triumph over the Fairfield Expos.
Up next for the Chancho’s is a Friday evening showdown against League City (Texas) in the finals of the winner’s bracket. Prevail in that game and the Chancho’s are only one win away from advancing to the American Legion World Series.
The most recent Chancho’s comeback took flight in the top of the fifth as they exploded for seven runs on six hits, two walks and two crucial Moondog errors in one sequence. Those two defensive miscues allowed the Beehive State champions to clear the bases with two outs and take a 8-6 lead. Easton Goodliffe then came through with a run-scoring single to cap off the game-changing half inning.
Tucson got a big two-out, two-run single to pull to within 9-8 in the home half of the sixth. Recent Green Canyon graduate Cade Atkinson scored on an error in the aftermath of a bunt single by Talon Marble to give the Chancho’s a two-run cushion one inning later, and it ended up being the game-winning run because the Moondogs pared their deficit to 10-9 with a two-out double in the bottom of the left. The tying run was at second when Trey Purser induced a fly ball to Bode Hansen in right field to slam the door.
In addition to Purser, the Chancho’s, winners of seven straight and 12 of their last 13 games, used three other pitchers in starter Degan Rigby, Jackson Hill and Goodliffe.
It was another well-rounded offensive performance for the Chancho’s, who got one run, two hits and a RBI from Goodliffe, one run, two hits and one free pass from Luke Palmer, two runs, one hit and two walks from Purser, a run-scoring triple and another RBI from Gehrig Marble, a pair of runs, base knocks, plus a RBI, from JC Jones, two hits from Hansen and one run, one RBI and two bases on balls from Conner Thomson.
Both teams struggled defensively at times as they teamed up for nine errors, resulting in six unearned runs for the Chancho’s and five for the Moondogs.
CLASS A REGIONALS
One local team was eliminated at the Class A Region 8 Tournament, while the other dropped down to the elimination bracket. The Blacksmith Fork (Mountain Crest) Trappers saw their season come to an end with a 4-1 loss to the Central Point (Oregon) Comets on Thursday in Roseburg, Oregon, while the Cache (Ridgeline) Wolverines had their 16-game winning snapped by the Glacier (Montana) Twins, who prevailed by a 5-3 scoreline later in the day.
The Comets scored twice in the top of the second and never looked back against the Trappers, who plated their lone run in the home half of the fourth, courtesy of a single by Ryder Bradford. Brody Johnson doubled earlier in the inning and sprinted home on Bradford’s base knock. Those were the only two hits in the game for Blacksmith Fork (15-11-1).
Ethan Christensen started on the mound for the Trappers, struck out four and allowed a pair of runs in three-and-two-thirds. Christensen was replaced by Mason Smith, who conceded two runs and fanned two in three-and-one-third.
Likewise, the Wolverines (30-11) never led in their second game of the tournament, although they pulled even at 3-3 in the top of the fourth. The Twins scored twice in the bottom of the first.
Cache scored its first run on a single by Jackson Christensen in the third inning, and then manufactured two more runs in the ensuing frame. A Tyson Smith single, compounded by a Glacier error, allowed Ripken and Jett Jensen to cross home plate.
The Twins answered back with a run in the bottom of the fourth and then added an insurance run in the sixth.
Smith finished with two hits, one RBI and a walk for the Wolverines, who got one single each from six other players. Smith also went the distance on the bump, gave up three earned runs on 11 hits and two free passes, and struck out four.
The Wolverines will now square off against the Comets in a Friday elimination game at 5 p.m.
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