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Walla Walla Sweets

Sweets Clobber Kelowna In Blowout Rubber Match

June 13, 2014 - West Coast League (WCL)
Walla Walla Sweets News Release


Looking to salvage the series against the Kelowna Falcons, the Walla Walla Sweets began Thursday's rubber game in similar fashion to Wednesday's game- solid pitching and a scrappy approach at the plate.

But in the bottom of the second inning, the Sweets jumped all over Kelowna starter Austin Lambright (0-1) for eight runs, only one earned, knocking the left-hander out of the game in the second inning.

Russell Crippen led off the inning with a walk, but was then erased as Aldo Ferrante grounded into a double play. But the rally started when Ryan Littlefield reached base on a dropped third strike. Jarod Gonzales then walked, and Parker Osborne singled to put the Sweets on the board. Andrew Mendenhall followed with another walk, Zach Rapacz reached on an error, and Jordan Frabasilio singled. Kelowna right fielder Brandon Grimsley then dropped a routine fly ball by John Skrbec, and in his second at-bat of the inning, Crippen followed with a two-run blast to left field to cap the rally and provide ample run support for Sweets starting pitcher Conner O'Neil.

Frabasilio had his best day at the plate of the season, driving in four runs on three hits and scoring a run of his own. Unfortunately though, he was forced to leave the game early due to an apparent injury suffered while running out an infield single in the fifth inning.

Crippen, a friend and college teammate of Lambright, said of the home run, "I knew he (Lambright) would challenge me with a fastball, so I took that into the at-bat and saw it (the pitch) out of his hand pretty quickly and I knew it'd be the kind of pitch I could turn on."

O'Neil (1-1) rebounded from a tough season debut last Friday to dominate the Falcons, allowing just one hit and one unearned run, while striking out twelve batters and walking only two over six innings. He allowed his lone run in the third inning, when Grimsley reached first base on an error, moved to second on a wild pitch, advanced to third on a flyout, and scored on a passed ball.

The Sweets then tacked on two runs in their half of the third against Kelowna righty Wyatt Mills on hits by Littlefield, Osborne and Frabasilio. In the fourth, they continued the attack on Mills behind another Kelowna error and a single and a double by Gonzales and Osborne, respectively, to tally two additional runs.

Of note was Kelowna reliever Aaron Mason, who provided four innings of scoreless relief in a mop-up role, scattering five hits and striking out four.

Treasure Valley Community College right-hander Cody Mathews made his Sweets debut in relief in the seventh inning, recording the first two outs before yielding a three-run romp to the Falcons, courtesy of two singles and two doubles. That made the score 12-4, and it would remain such the rest of the way, as Brian Greisman pitched a scoreless eighth and another newcomer, Omar Porras of Chandler-Gilbert Community College, pitched a perfect ninth to end the game and seal the series victory.

After a day off Friday, the Sweets will head to Corvallis to take on the Knights for a three-game series beginning Saturday at 7:15 PM.

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