The Philomath High School baseball split a pair of games Tuesday on the second day of the Newport Tournament with a 3-2 loss to Hillsboro followed by a 13-3 win over Valley Catholic.
The Warriors (2-2) won two of their three games at the tournament, which has been an event that traditionally shows up on the schedule each year. Philomath will now take the rest of the week off and for the third time this season will try to play its home opener with an April 3 matchup against Madras.
After a four-hit showing in the one-run loss to 5A Hillsboro, the Warrior bats came alive in the 10-run rout over the Valiants. Philomath led 9-0 going into the sixth inning and after surrendering three runs, came back in the top of the seventh with a strong response by scoring four more.
Philomath’s first four batters in the top of the first pretty much set the tone for how things would unfold in this one. Caleb Babcock led off with a double, Mason Stearns followed with a single and David Griffith worked a walk to load the bases for Ty May. The Warriors senior came through with a two-run single before a single out had been recorded in the inning.
Two batters later, Grant Niemann’s grounder to shortstop was enough to get Griffith home. Logan Matthews followed with a one-run single to make it 4-0.
Philomath added another run in the second when Babcock walked and later scored when Chad Russell reached on an error.
The Warriors scored four runs in the fourth inning and did it all with two outs. May reached on a dropped third strike and then Russell and Niemann both walked to load the bases. Matthews came through with a two-run single for a 7-0 lead. After Wylie Griffith singled to again load the bases, Silas Pittman hit a clutch two-run double.
Valley Catholic hit two doubles and two singles in the sixth to get on the scoreboard. Philomath had a response, however, with four runs in the seventh. Babcock started the inning with a double, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a sacrifice fly by Stearns. David Griffith was hit by a pitch and May singled to set up a two-run double by Niemann. Two batters later, Wylie Griffith drove in Niemann on a single.
Stearns had an effective start with a complete-game, 91-pitch effort. He allowed six hits, two earned runs and three walks with seven strikeouts.
Matthews went 4 for 5 with three RBIs, Stearns and Wylie Griffith both went 3 for 4, Babcock was 2 for 3 with three runs and May finished 2 for 5 with three runs and two RBIs. Pittman drove in two and Niemann drove in three. David Griffith and Nieman both scored twice.
In Philomath’s earlier game, Hillsboro got on the scoreboard first with two runs in the bottom of the first — both scored on errors.
The Warriors tied the game in the third on a two-out, two-run single by May. Stearns reached on an error and David Griffith singled to set things up for May. But that would be it for Philomath’s offense with only one more hit the rest of the game.
Hillsboro pushed across what would be the winning run in the fifth inning.
The Warriors were limited to just four hits in the game in a complete-game performance by Hillsboro pitcher Hubbard Sage. Philomath’s Brayden Shenk also went the distance and allowed nine hits, two earned runs and two walks with seven strikeouts.
