Sun and clouds mixed. High 84F. Winds light and variable..
Tonight
Rain showers early will evolve into a more steady rain overnight. Low 49F. Winds W at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 70%. Rainfall around a quarter of an inch.
HOOD RIVER — The Hood River Valley High School baseball team picked up three Northwest Oregon Conference wins last week and is the top-ranked team in OSAA Class 5A.
The Eagles won 10-0 at La Salle Prep on May 5; 2-0 at Canby High School on May 6; and 7-3 against Canby on May 8. The Eagles (16-4 overall, 9-1 NWOC), led by head Coach Max Reitz, are tied with Wilsonville in the NWOC standings heading into a two-game series between the teams May 12 at home and May 13 on the road.
“The guys really brought it this week,” said Reitz. “Three big wins, including two on the road against tough conference opponents.”
The Eagles outhit La Salle (11-10, 8-2 NWOC) 15-3 in a dominant showing in all phases of the game. Senior Bodie Stuben pitched a shutout through five innings, giving up three hits. The game ended after five innings due to the OSAA mercy rule (contest ends if a team is up by 10 runs after five innings).
“We played maybe our most complete game of the year in this one,” said Reitz. “Bodie Stuben was excellent on the mound and had his best breaking ball yet this season. He also came up big at the plate with a sacrifice fly and a bases-loaded double after they intentionally walked Kingston [McAdam]. McAdam had a huge home run to get the offense started, and we took tough at-bats, all game long, one through nine in the order. Tyson Harjo was especially tough on them, going 4-4 at the plate.”
At Canby, HRV picked a huge road win behind sophomore Landen Pratt’s impressive performance on the mound. Pratt pitched for six innings, striking out ten and giving up two hits to the Cougars (11-9, 7-3 NWOC).
“I’m so proud of how our guys showed a ton of grit with this road win against maybe the best pitcher in 5A baseball [Jack Brauckmiller],” said Reitz. “Landen Pratt once again matched an elite starter pitch for pitch and outlasted him. That includes strikeouts on his last seven outs he recorded.”
Canby entered the series on a seven-game win streak. Against Canby at home, the Eagles out hit the Cougars, 12-5. On the mound, sophomore Tyson Harjo and senior Trevor Jacobs combined for a five-hit, three-run showing.
“Friday, we just kept applying constant pressure in all phases of the game and broke through with a big four-run sixth inning. Harjo did a great job challenging hitters on the mound, and Maverick Hockett had some big plays for us at the dish and on the bases. Great team win,” said Reitz.
Commented