BaseballSoccer

Timp Sports Weekly
March 24, 2008

Publisher's Message

The themes for this week's issue is going to be about cats and no respect. Two of the stories cover northern Utah County teams playing the Payson Lions, Pine View Panthers, and Orem Tigers. I do confess that prefer to call the Lions Kitties, the Panthers Kittens, and the Tigers Tiggers. A third story covers the Lehi Pioneers' heartbreaking loss at home to the Skyline Eagles. A fourth story deals with the Awesome American Fork Cavemen's battle to earn respect as a baseball powerhouse. The fifth story deals with the start of the American Fork track teams opening their season with a quad meet that they had hosted at home. Let's get to those stories right now

Dean Von Memmott
Publisher
deanmemmott@hotmail.com

Payson Has Nothing to Meow About in Baseball Loss at Lehi
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The Payson Lions, alias the Kitties, had nothing to meow about during a non-league baseball game that they played on the Lehi Pioneers' field March 17. Eager to avenge an 8-2 loss that they had suffered on the Provo Bulldogs' home field March 16, the Pioneers silenced Payson 12-4.

The game was the Lions' first loss of the season. Payson's record is now 5-1. The win gave Lehi the momentum it needed to go on to keep the Tigers from bouncing all over them in a non-league game on Pioneer Field March 18. Lehi took down Orem 9-2 in that game.

Now in regards to the March 17 game, the Lions looked as though they would rip Lehi apart during the top of the first inning. With one out and two Lions on base, No. 4 Payson hitter Brady Loveless hit a three-run homer off pitcher Bronson Anderson. Soon, Payson's Stevie Clark and Hadley Spivey each hit a two-out single off the Lehi hurler. The Pioneers kept Payson from building upon its 3-0 lead.

Lehi rallied back in the bottom of the first. Capitalizing on an error, Palmer Page slugged a one-out double which brought leadoff hitter Tanner Martin home. Jordy Hart homered three runs to put Lehi out in front 4-3.

Through the next five innings, Lehi kept the Lions from capitalizing on hits. In the top of the second, for example, Kyler Figgins and Jace Harmon both ended up stranded on base after each of them had slugged a single. Spivey contributed a second single and a sixth-inning double to go 3-3 at the plate, but Lehi kept him from doing any damage. A Harmon double in the fifth couldn't switch things around to Payson's favor either. By the time Lion Spencer Smith had singled Spencer Gabbitas in for the fourth Lion run of the game, Payson had no hope whatsoever for rallying back.

After T.J. Russon had hit a one-run single to open a five-run stampede for the Pioneers in the second, the game became a contest over whether Lehi would be able to 10-run the Lions by the end of the fifth. An Ed Day double sparked a four-run rally for Lehi in the third. The Pioneers received two chances to put the game away by the top of the fifth, but a stubborn Lion defense kept the game going until the top of the seventh.

Lehi Coach Pat Gleave said, "We were happy with Bronson Anderson's pitching. He's just a sophomore, but he's been throwing very well on the varsity level. We had big hits from T.J. Russon and Jordy Hart."

Looking back on the Orem game, Gleave said, "Orem was leading us 2-1 in the sixth when we went on an eight-run rally in the bottom of the inning. We ended up winning the game 9-3."

In the March 21 preseason action at home, Jake Miller emerged as the winning pitcher while he registering a two-run, seventh-inning single that gave Lehi a 3-2 win over the Skyview Bobcats, alias the Bobkittens.

Cavekickers Finish Preseason Play With Unbeaten Record
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The Awesome American Fork Cavemen finished their non-league soccer schedule with a record of two wins and one tie.

After having won 2-0 on the Payson Lions' home field March 13, American Fork won 3-0 at home over the Pine View Panthers in a March 20 contest.

American Fork Coach Barkley Chile said, "At Payson, Jordan Jacklin scored our first goal 30 minutes into the game. Trent Burch scored the next goal shortly before halftime. We had our chances to make more goals, but we narrowly missed some good shots. We played really good defense. In the second half, Payson took only one shot on goal."

In the Pine View game, the Panthers had sweepers Danny Garcia and Jordan Mendez perform as the backbone for their defense. Goalie Jose Aguire managed to keep the Cavemen scoreless for much of the first half.

However, the determined efforts of Caveman players, such as Burch, Quinton Hull, and Steve Bean, eventually paid off for the home team. Twenty-five minutes into the contest, Caveman Austin Mansfield broke the scoreless deadlock with a successful shot that he took from inside the Pine View penalty box. American Fork went on to win the game on successful shots from Parker Harrison and Jordan Jacklin.

Pioneer Kickers Lose Close Game at Home to Skyline
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The Lehi Pioneers' home season opened on a disappointing note for them March 18 when the visiting Skyline Eagles came from behind to defeat them 2-1 in a non-league game.

Lehi Coach Steve McMurdie said, "We knew Skyline was on a roll. They had won two of their first three games this year. We weren't attack-minded this year. Our biggest problem was that we weren't mentally tough. We need to change that attitude during our preseason game against Mountain Crest."

The loss game in the aftermath of the Pioneers' 2-0 win on the Northridge Knights' Layton field March 13. In that game, Iam Ramos and Ryan Curtis each scored a goal for Lehi.

In the Skyline game, Lehi led the entire first half. Ten minutes into the contest, Curtis scored the game's first goal. However, Skyline goalie Matt Kershaw smothered the Pioneers' efforts to stretch their 1-0 lead. With his swiftness, the Eagle goalie did not let another Lehi shot sneak past him during the rest of the game.

Fifteen minutes into the second half, Skyline's Greg Wight evened the score at one on a breakaway play. Defensive efforts by Lehi's Devin Davis and goalie Riley Anderson kept the Eagles from breaking the tie until the clock read 2:58. At that time, Scottie Nelson scored the goal gave the Eagles the win.

Cavebatters Pick Up 4 Wins in Battle for Earning Statewide Respect This Baseball Season
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The 2009 high school baseball season is now two weeks old in Utah, the Awesome American Fork Cavemen have already become this year's Rodney Dangerfields in 5-A ranks. None of the daily newspapers, such as the Deseret News and Salt Lake Tribune, have bothered to place them as being among the 25 strongest teams in the state.

This past week, the Cavemen set out to prove why they deserved to be ranked. They knocked two state-ranked teams and swept a doubleheader at home against the Bonneville Bees of Idaho Falls, Idaho.

In a home season opened against the Judge Memorial Bulldogs March 19, American Fork fixed the Salt Lake City team 9-3. In the top of that game's first inning, Cort Zollinger hit a two-single that sent Judge charging out to a 3-0 lead. However, American Fork didn't let the Bulldogs make any more runs in the game. American Fork Coach Jarod Ingersoll said, "Bo Fisher and Josh Mooney each hit a home run for us that lifted us to our 9-3 win over Judge."

After trimming the Bulldog lead to 3-2 in the second inning, American Fork tied the game at three in the third. In the fifth, the Cavemen went on a five-run rally to put the game away.

"For the Jordan game, [Jim] Davis pitched very well for us," Ingersoll said.

Played at Salt Lake Community College March 19, the contest saw two American Fork coaches and two Caveman players get tossed out of the game. The ejections didn't stop American Fork from clobbering the Jordan Beetdiggers 16-6 in the seven-inning affair. The two teams battled to a 1-1 tie in the first inning. After American Fork took a 5-1 lead in the second, the Cavemen never looked back.

In the first game of the Bonneville doubleheader, the Bees took a 2-0 lead on a Tyson Della Silva single and Porter Clayton's theft of home plate.

Aided by a Jake Miller walk in the bottom of the first, the Cavemen loaded the bases on no outs, and Ben Beddes singled in two runs to open a six-run rally, climaxed with Evan Wright's two-run triple.

In the third's top half, Bees Jordan Rapp singled in a run while Trey Handled doubled in Brandon Craig to cut the lead to 6-4. Though Miller's fourth-inning triple led to American Fork picking up its seventh run, the Cavemen almost got stung in the fifth's top half Della Silva's triple led to Rapp and Dylan Kowitz each slugging a one-run single, pushing Bonneville within 7-6.

Ryan Hall's theft of home plate in the bottom of the fifth, opened a four-run rally that gave American Fork the 12-6 win.

In the bottom of the second game's first inning, Hall singled in two runs, opening a five-run rally for the Cavemen. They picked two runs in the third, three in the fourth, and two in the fifth. Bonneville got on the board in the top of the fifth, but the Bees became done for when Fisher doubled in Stu Duersch. Beddes knocked in a run to end the game."

Cavetrackster Open Season With Four-Way Meet at Home
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher

The American Fork Cavemen and Cavewomen opened their 2009 track season with a four-way meet at home March 17. American Fork hosted the Timpanogos Timberwolves, Spanish Fork Dons, and Park City Miners.

"Both Timpanogos and Spanish Fork are among the best teams in 5-A," said American Fork Coach Art Taylor. "The meet gave us a chance to see how we could do against them. We're a young team this year."

Dani West won the girls' 400-meter dash while teammate Taylir Garrison jumped her way to a first-place finish in the girls' high jump. Robby Lee won the boys' 1,600-meter run.

In the girls' discuss, Melissa Roberts took second and Ilo Mansun third. Alexis Laws took fourth in the girls' 1,600-meter run. In the boys' 3,200-meter run, Austin West took third and Jeff Nelson fifth.