The West Kootenay ‘A’ Orioles settled for a split against their Washington State American Legion (WSALB) rival Deer Park on Saturday at Butler Park.
After a huge seventh inning gave Deer Park a 13-10 victory in the opening game of the double-header, the single-A Orioles bounced back to defeat the Stags 7-1 in Game 2.
Leading 1-0 in the bottom of the fourth, the Orioles scored the winning run off a pair of back-to-back doubles by Lucas Miracle and Austin Cox in the second tilt. Miracle took a two-strike pitch deep to right field to start the rally. Cox then stepped up and pounded the first pitch over the head of the centerfielder to the fence to score Miracle and give the O’s a 2-0 lead.
With the win, the Orioles improved their record to 10-2 and keeps the team in the running for top spot in the Area 3 Central Division with Deer Park who suffered just their first loss of the season against the Orioles on Saturday.
West Kootenay jumped out to an 1-0 lead in the bottom of one. Tony Pasqualatto set the tone early, running down a deep drive to centerfield and making a great over-the-shoulder catch to keep Deer Park off the scoreboard. Pasqualotto then led off the bottom half of the inning with a walk, and scored on singles from Miracle and Cox for the lead.
West Kootenay broke it open in the fourth. T.J. Murdoch walked to lead off, and Connor Amonson singled to right putting Murdoch in scoring position. A double by Pasqualotto cleared the bases and back-to-back singles from Felix McMillan and Miracle completed the rally for the Orioles. The teams traded runs in the sixth inning, and Schroder put the game away in the seventh.
The home team needed a strong performance from their 15-year-old ace in the second half of the double bill, after Deer Park pounded the Orioles bullpen in the opening match. The Fruitvale native didn’t disappoint. Schroder went the distance, giving up one run on four hits and three walks while striking out three, and let her defence do the rest, as the team played errorless ball in Game 2.
In Saturday’s opening game, West Kootenay held a comfortable 7-3 advantage heading into the seventh and final inning. But Deer Park refused to go quietly, scoring 10 runs to seize a 13-7 lead. The Orioles responded with three more of their own in the bottom half of the seventh but could not make up the difference, losing 13-10 to the Stags.
West Kootenay returns to action this weekend with games in Coeur d’Alene before returning home June 30 with a double header against Ferris at 4 and 6 p.m. and another double bill on July 1 versus Selkirk at 5 and 7 p.m. at Butler.
