Hustlers see successful eight-win week

THE DALLES — The Columbia Gorge Hustlers 18U American Legion team had a successful week on the diamond, picking up eight wins.

The Hustlers started the week with two wins against the Hillsboro Legion club, 14-7 and 10-0 on June 16, then got two wins against the Wellcare Dodgers AAA club (Salem), 20-6 and 17-11, on June 17. The Hustlers picked up two more wins against Rose City Baseball Legion 17U, 7-4 and 7-2, on June 19 and closed out the week with two wins against the Tigard Clippers, 10-0 and 7-3, on June 20 all at Quinton Street Ballpark in The Dalles.

The Hustlers (10-3) had a solid all-around showing in game one, led by Hood River’s Landen Pratt, who got the start on the mound, pitching 3.2 innings, giving up two hits with five strikeouts. The Dalles’ Daylee Miller led the Hustlers at the plate, going 3 for 4 with four RBI.

In game two with Hillsboro, Hood River’s Trevor Jacobs got the start on the mound, pitching four innings, giving up two hits with six strikeouts. Sherman’s Gage Simpson stepped in for Jacobs in the fifth, giving up one hit in two innings pitched to help seal the deal. Miller had another successful outing at the plate, going 2 for 3 with four RBI.

The Hustlers dominated both games against the Wellcare Dodgers of Salem. In game one, The Dalles’ Evan Ortega pitched four innings with seven strikeouts, giving up four hits. At the plate, the Hustlers struck out three times as a team throughout the game, putting up a 12-run third inning to help cement the victory.

In game two, the Hustlers had an all-around team showing with great plate performances from Landen Pratt, The Dalles’ Sawyer Case and White Salmon’s Ryder Graves, as all three players had two RBI on the day. Hood River’s Bodie Stuben added an efficient performance, going 2-4 at the plate as the Hustlers finished with 17 runs in the game.

Against Rose City, Jacobs took control at the plate, going 2-3 with a run in game one, and 2-2 with two runs in game two. The Hustlers benefited greatly from a five-run second inning in game two to coast to a second victory.

The Hustlers closed out their week with the Tigard Clippers, scoring seven runs in the fourth inning of game one. Stuben had another day at the plate, going 1-3 with three RBI. In game two, Stuben got the start on the mound, pitching four innings with five strikeouts. Miller finished the game for the Hustlers, pitching three innings with five strikeouts to pick up the win.