West Linn baseball picks up series sweep of Lake Oswego

The West Linn baseball team solidified a three-game series sweep over Lake Oswego on Friday, April 26, defeating the Lakers 4-1 at West Linn High School.

The Lions jumped on top of the Lakers in the bottom of the first inning, as back-to-back hits by seniors Gabe Howard and Mitch Rowe ultimately led to a run being walked home before a passed ball made it 2-0.

From there, the two teams traded scoreless frames before senior catcher Ryan VandenBrink sent a solo home run deep over the left field fence to extend the West Linn lead to 3-0.

VandenBrink continued a productive outing in the bottom of the fifth, producing a two-out double before junior Danny Wideman brought him around with an RBI single to make it 4-0.

Lake Oswego would begin to claw back in the top of the seventh, as senior Campbell Smith and junior Parker Saefke recorded hits before senior Finley Smith scored a run with an infield sacrifice.

Still, it proved too late, as senior reliever Carson Boyer recorded a strikeout to close out a 4-1 win for the Lions.

Junior Roy Espinosa pitched six scoreless innings for West Linn, which completed a three-game sweep over the Lakers while improving to 15-4 overall and 8-1 in Three Rivers League play on Friday.

Meanwhile, Lake Oswego fell to 14-6 and 5-4 league play.