Champs ... again
Mission Valley Mariners win Dillon tournament
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DILLON — For the second weekend in a row, the Mission Valley Mariners baseball team brought home championship tournament hardware, earning a first-place finish in Dillon at the Maybelle Arthur Tournament. The unstoppable Mariners won the tournament last year as well.
After five lead changes in Sunday’s Championship game at Dillon, the Mariners pulled out a 9-6 win over the Bitterroot Bruins. The Mariners managed to grab the lead after a strong fourth inning made good on an RBI single by Bradley Pichler, scoring Alex Killian.
Jeremiah Crawford had two extra-base hits for the Mariners. He tripled in the first inning, clubbed a monster centerfield home run in the fifth, and singled in the sixth. Pichler, Killian, J. Crawford and Olson combined for eight hits and six RBIs.
Chris Drebes allowed five runs over five and two-thirds innings earning the win on the mound. Drebes struck out three, walked one and gave up eight hits. Nick Crawford closed shop on the bump, issuing two strikeouts and no walks.
On Friday, the Mariners started the tournament strong with a 13-6 win against the Dillon Cubs. The team scored four runs in the seventh on a two-run single by Nick Crawford, an error, and a passed ball.
T.J. Olson racked up four RBIs on three hits for the Mariners. He singled in the first, second, and sixth innings. Jared Young also had a great day at the plate going 3 for 4 and bringing in 2 runs.
Bradley Pichler got the win, going the distance on the bump. Pichler struck out four, walked three and gave up six hits.
The Mariners brought home four runs in the sixth inning, and matched that run total in the seventh. In the sixth, the Mariners scored on a groundout by Alex Killian, scoring Ryan Pablo.
In game two, the Mariners jumped out to an early lead, but were unable to hold on and lost 6-5 to Bitterroot on Friday.
While the Mariners led until the fifth inning, Butte worked its way back and took the lead on a solo home run at the top of seven, breaking the tie. Jeremiah Crawford pitched a complete game striking out nine, walking three and allowing four hits.
Bradley Pichler boosted his batting average thanks to a perfect 3-3 day at the plate to pace the Mariners. He homered in the third inning and singled in the first and fifth innings.
Zeke Webster-Yaqui also lobbed a long one with a triple.
Butte didn’t stand a chance in game three on Saturday, as the Mariners captured a blowout 10-0 win in five innings at Dillon.
The Mariners scored five runs in the fifth on a two-run error, a sacrifice fly by Brennan Andrews, a wild pitch, and an RBI single by Jeremiah Crawford. Crawford had a perfect 3-3 day at the plate for the Mariners.
Kellen Hoyt brought the heat against Butte during his outing. Butte managed just one hit off of the ace, who allowed no earned runs, walked four and struck out five during his five innings of work.
The Mariners didn’t relinquish the lead after scoring five runs in the third inning when they scored on an RBI double by T.J. Olson, a passed ball, a groundout by Andrews, and an RBI single by Bradley Pichler. A wild pitch scored Ryan Pablo and sealed the win on the 10-run rule for the Mariners.
In game four on Sunday, the Mariners shut the door early on the Pioneers, capturing an 11-1 victory and securing a spot in Sunday afternoon’s championship game.
With nine runs in the first three innings, the Mariners left no doubt about the eventual outcome.
A two-run double by Jeremiah Crawford, a couple of errors, a passed ball, and an RBI single by Zeke Webster-Yaqui in the first inning, jump started the Mariners right away.
The Pioneers couldn’t get anything going as long as Webster-Yaqui was pitching. The Pioneers managed just three hits off of Webster-Yaqui, who allowed no earned runs, walked one and struck out five during his five innings of work.
Mission Valley hopes to keep the tournament win streak going with the upcoming Big Bucks tournament hosted by Libby next weekend. They also face four conference games to be played at home on Tuesday against the Kalispell A team and Wednesday against the Glacier Twins. Both double-header days begin at 4 p.m. at O’Malley Park off 11th Avenue East and 2nd Street East.
Summary
Game 1
Mariners 13, Dillon Cubs 6
Mariners3200044-13
Cubs0020031-6
Pablo 2-4, Andrews 2-4, Killian 2-3, N. Crawford 1-4, Olson 3-5, Hoyt 0-5, Young 3-4, Probst 0-4, Rasmussen 0-3.
2B – Pablo; RBI’s – Olson (4), Killian, N. Crawford, Young (2), Hoyt.
Special tournament game awards: Defensive Award- Brad Pichler, Offensive Award – Jared Young, Player of the Game Award – T.J. Olson.
Game 2
Bitterroot Bruins 6, Mariners 5
Bruins0020301-6
Mariners`1220000-5
Pablo 1-4, Webster-Yaqui 1-4, Killian 1-4, Pichler 3-3, Andrews 0-2, N. Crawford 0-2,
Olson 1-3, Young 1-3, Rasmussen 0-2, Probst 0-1, Woodward 0-1.
3B – Webster-Yaqui, HR – Pichler; RBI’s- Webster-Yaqui, Pichler, Andrews.
Special tournament game awards: Offensive Award – Bradley Pichler.
Game 3
Mariners 10, Butte Miners 0
Butte00000-0
Mariners00505-10
Pablo 2-3, Andrews 0-3, Webster-Yaqui 2-4, J. Crawford 3-3, Killian 1-3, Pichler 2-3, Olson 1-2, Young 1-3, Sorrell 0-2, Woodward 0-0.
2B – Webster-Yaqui, J. Crawford, Olson. 3B – Webster-Yaqui.
RBI’s – Andrews (2), J. Crawford, Pichler, Olson, Sorrell.
Special tournament game awards: Defensive Award – Kellen Hoyt, Offensive Award – Jeremiah Crawford, Player of the Game Award – Zeke Webster-Yaqui.
Game 4
Mariners 11, Missoula Pioneers 1
Mariners62102-11
Pioneers00001-1
Pablo 1-2, Andrews 1- 1, Webster-Yaqui 2-4, J. Crawford 1-3, Killian 1-3, Pichler 0-2, Olson 0-3, Probst 0-2, Young 0-2, Rasmussen 0-0, Peel 0-1.
2B – Andrews, J.Crawford. RBI’s – J.Crawford (3), Andrews, Webster-Yaqui, Killian.
Special tournament game awards: Defensive award – Alex Killian, Offensive award – Jeremiah Crawford, Player of the Game award – Zeke Webster-Yaqui.
Championship Game
Mariners 9, Bitterroot Bruins 6
Bruins1002021-6
Mariners100620--9
0-4, Andrews 1-4, Webster-Yaqui 1-4, J.Crawford 3-3, Killian 1-3, Pichler 2-2, Olson 2-3,
N.Crawford 0-1, Young 0-2.
2B – Olson, 3B – J.Crawford, Killian. RBI’s – J.Crawford (2), Killian (2), Pichler, Olson, N.Crawford.
Tournament Trophy Awards: Offensive Award – Jeremiah Crawford and Defensive Award – Ryan Pablo.
