Reeves keeps Comets perfect in Invitational

Text Size: A | A | A

Print this Article Email this Article

CENTRAL POINT — Brittany Reeves did a little bit of everything Tuesday, but her performance was nothing new for the Crater softball team.

The junior right-hander was brilliant from the circle and a hit at the plate, as well, navigating the Comets to a 12-0 victory over Rainier and a 3-2 triumph over Tigard in the last day of the North Medford Invitational at Crater High School.

"She's doing really well and having a good year so far," said Crater coach Chris Arnold. "She's (only) got a couple of different pitches. She just mixes pitches very well and knows what pitches to throw against which batters."

Two early six-run innings helped Reeves' cause against Rainier.

Rainier committed two errors in the first inning, which led to three Crater runs. Reeves and catcher Sarah Haga capped the frame with RBI singles.

"It wasn't the cleanest ball game I've ever seen, that's for sure," said Arnold of the damp field conditions that caused North Medford's tournament to scatter to two different locations at Crater and another in Grants Pass.

Reeves came up big again in the Comets' six-run third, belting a two-run single to put the contest out of reach. She finished 2-for-2 with three RBIs and Haga was 2-for-3 against Rainier.

Reeves registered six strikeouts in the first three innings and freshman Sarah Smith closed out the final two innings, fanning five more. The game only went five innings because of the 10-run mercy rule.

Offense didn't come as easy against Class 6A Tigard, but Crater gained the advantage with a three-run third inning.

With the bases loaded and two outs, Emily Morrow was hit by a pitch, forcing home a Comet run to tie it 1-all. Ashleigh Larson followed with a two-run single to put the Comets up 3-1.

Reeves finally yielded her first run of the day in the fourth inning when Tigard's Erin Nyberg scored on a two-out, bases-loaded single. Reeves finished with seven strikeouts in the contest, which lasted six innings because of a time limit.

"She kept them off balance with her heavy ball," said Arnold. "It just drops right out of the strike zone. They (Tigard) were a strong group of hitters."

In Tuesday's other North Medford Invitational action, Southridge beat Sprague, 7-1; Grants Pass beat Glencoe, 1-0; Forest Grove beat Roseburg, 3-1; West Salem beat Putnam, 3-2; Grants Pass beat Sunset, 6-1; North Medford beat Sprague, 7-0; Tigard beat Churchill, 10-0; Glencoe beat Rainier, 2-1; South Salem beat Southridge, 4-0; Forest Grove and West Salem played to a 0-0 tie through seven innings due to a time limit; Putnam beat Roseburg, 1-0; South Medford beat Churchill, 1-0; and South Salem beat Sunset, 3-0.

Crater 606 00 — 12 8 0

Rainier 000 00 — 0 2 2

Reeves, Smith (4) and Haga; Stebbins and Walker. W — Reeves (4-0). L — Stebbins. 2B — R: Abole.

U

Tigard 100 100 — 2 4 1

Crater 003 00x — 3 2 2

Sutes and Kadin; Reeves and Haga. W — Reeves (5-0). L — Sutes.

NORTH MEDFORD 7, SPRAGUE 0 — At Central Point, North Medford pitcher Taylor Schmidt tossed a three-hit shutout as the Black Tornado coasted to victory in its own tournament.

Schmidt never faced more than three batters in any inning. To make up for the surrendered hits, North Medford's defense came up with a double play, a Sprague baserunner was caught stealing and another runner was called out for leaving base early.

The junior right-hander also registered nine strikeouts without a walk and was 3-for-3 from the plate with two runs scored.

North Medford (3-3) jumped out 3-0 in the bottom of the third when Kassie Choi and Jenna Stevens each pushed across runs on back-to-back groundouts.

Justine Sandoval's two-run double in the sixth gave North a 7-0 advantage. Sandoval, Stevens and Amanda Wolfe each had two hits for the Black Tornado.

Sprague 000 000 0 — 0 3 1

North Medford 012 112 x — 7 11 0

Parcell and Sorenson; Schmidt and Wolfe. W — Schmidt (3-0). L — Parcell. 2B — S: Harp; NM: Sandoval, Wolfe.

SOUTH MEDFORD 1, CHURCHILL 0 — At Central Point, junior pitcher Dominique Newman pitched a three-hitter and freshman Ashleigh Hawkins doubled and scored South Medford's lone run in the North Medford Invitational at Crater High.

Newman (3-0) struck out three and walked two for the Panthers (4-2), who played their final game in the tourney.

South scored in the fifth inning after Hawkins doubled off the wall with one out. With two outs, she stole third and scored when the catcher's throw sailed into the outfield.

Churchill threatened to tie it in the seventh, but Panther second baseman Camille Smith threw out a runner at the plate from short right field for the first out. Then with a runner still at third, Newman got a strikeout and a groundout to end the game.

Smith was 2-for-3.

South Medford 000 010 0 — 1 6 1

Churchill 000 000 0 — 0 3 0

Newman and James; Peterson and Anderson. W — Newman (3-0). L — Peterson. 2B — SM: Hawkins. 3B — C: Lessel.

GRANTS PASS WINS TWO — At Grants Pass, sophomore pitcher Morgan Barnes tossed a three-hit shutout in eight innings to go with 14 strikeouts against Glencoe, guiding Grants Pass to the first of two wins in the North Medford Invitational.

After edging Glencoe 1-0 in extra innings, the Cavers rode another solid pitching performance from Chelsey Chamberlain to a 6-2 victory over Sunset.

Emily Wolf, who was 2-for-3, drove in the game-winning run in the bottom of the eighth against Glencoe.

Chamberlain moved her pitching record to 4-0 in the nightcap against Sunset. The senior scattered eight hits and one walk in seven innings, and helped her cause with five strikeouts.

Grants Pass' lead ballooned to 5-0 in the second inning after two-run singles from Tera Glover and Karleigh Prestianni.

Prestianni drove in three runs in the game and, along with Glover and Cami Bennett, had two hits.

Glencoe 000 000 00 — 0 3 0

Grants Pass 000 000 01 — 1 4 4

Anderson and Dendinger; Barnes and Wolf. W — Barnes (5-0). L — Anderson. 2B — GP: Wolf.

u

Grants Pass 140 001 0 — 6 8 1

Sunset 001 001 0 — 2 8 2

Chamberlain and Misfeldt; Najdek, Miller (4) and Downey. W — Chamberlain (4-0). L — Najdek. 2B — S: Boyd 2, Delbazo, Johnson, Boyd.

Print this Article Email this Article