The Crook County Cowboys rolled over the Madras White Buffalos 25-6 Monday afternoon in Madras in Tri-Valley Conference baseball action.
Despite the lopsided score the Cowboys could easily have won by even more as they scored at least three runs in each of the five innings that were played before the game was called due to the 10-run rule. Crook county scored four in the first, three in the second, eight in the third, and five in both the fourth and fifth innings.
Meanwhile, Madras scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the first and added two more runs in both the third and fourth innings. Crook County blasted 17 hits in the contest, and were aided by eight Madras errors along with nine walks. Meanwhile, Crook County pitchers limited Madras to six hits, however, they walked eight batters and the Cowboys committed a pair of errors.
Ten different Cowboys had at least one hit in the contest with Tyis Yustat going 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles, while Gage Martinez went 2-for-3 with a double and a triple. Cody Kurtz went 2-for-2 with a double, while Tyson Martinez went 3-for-5 at the plate and Hayden Forman went 2-for-3. Other Cowboys to get hits included Clayton Dill, Austin Vaughan, Trenton Tucker, Ethan Lamphere and Zach Allen, who each had a single.
“Since we have four games this week, we wanted to end it in five and keep the wear and tear down," Bailey said. “The guys keep hitting the ball and keep doing well.”
Dasen Rodriguez had a pair of singles for Madras, while Pablo Solis had a double and Nakomis Rivera had a home run. Noah Vibbert and Danny Jackson had the remaining White Buffalo hits, both singles.
With the win, the Cowboys, 11-1, 17-4, remain in first place in the Tri-Valley Conference, while Madras, 3-10, 10-13, was virtually eliminated from playoff contention with the loss. The White Buffalos still technically have an opportunity to earn a play-in game as an at-large berth. However, to do so they would need help from several other teams.
Ending the game in five innings was important for Crook County as instead of the normal three games a week the team has four games this week due to a previously scheduled game at Molalla getting rained out, so the two teams will play a doubleheader at Molalla on Friday.
Because of the extra game, Bailey was concerned about his pitching rotation, but Monday's game was exactly what the team was hoping for with no pitcher having to throw too many pitches.
“That was the goal,” Bailey said. “We wanted to make sure that we had guys available for Friday.”
Kurtz started on the mound and threw 56 pitches in two innings of work. Carson Knudtson came in to start the third inning and threw just 46 pitches in three innings.
The White Buffalos used three pitchers, starting Tyler Clarkson, who had two innings of work, giving up seven runs on five hits, while Danny Jackson pitched the next two innings allowing 13 runs on nine hits. Reed Simmelink pitched the fifth inning for the White Buffalos allowing three hits and five runs. Of the 25 Crook County runs, just 13 were earned.
The blowout victory sets the Cowboys up for a showdown Wednesday with The Dalles Riverhawks, 11-2, 17-7, for the league championship. Although both teams still have league games on Friday, barring a major upset whoever wins Wednesday's game in Prineville will wind up winning the league championship.
“Wednesday is a big game because if we don't beat them and they win out and we win out they win the league championship, because they win the tiebreaker,” Bailey said. “ We are treating Wednesday like a league championship game. They dropped one last week, but they do a good job of responding to their coach and challenges, so I expect them to come out fired up against us and another really good baseball game.”
The two teams have split their two previous meetings this year, with The Dalles taking the last game 2-1 in extra innings.
Crook County then closes out the regular season with Friday's doubleheader at Molalla, 5-7, 10-11. The Cowboys have already guaranteed themselves a playoff spot. The team is now trying to position themselves to get the best draw possible. Crook County is ranked sixth in the latest OSAA power rankings, while The Dalles is ninth and Molalla is 22nd.
Crook County 25, Madras 6
at Madras, May 6
Crook County – 4 3 8 5 5 – 25 17 2
Madras – 2 0 2 2 0 – 6 6 8
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