Timp Sports Weekly
August 4, 2009
Publisher's Message
In high school-level baseball, eight-inning games carry a lot of excitement. That was the case in two of the stories covered in this issue. One of those games involved the American Fork Cavemen and the Ferocious Pleasant Grove Vikings. The other eight-inning game was the Varsity League championship game between the Lehi Pioneers and the Wasatch Wasps, AKA the Bugs. Another baseball story that we will look is a playoff game that saw the Timpanogos Timberwolves, AKA T-Pups, drained Lehi by 10 runs. Let's get to those games.
Dean Von Memmott
Publisher
deanmemmott@hotmail.com
Ferocious PG Vikings Win 10-9 over AF Cavebatters in UBAL Playoff Game
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
It took the Ferocious Pleasant Grove Vikings eight innings to take down the American Fork Cavemen 10-9 in an opening-round, playoff game for the Utah Baseball Academy League's 17-under division pennant.
Played on Viking Field July 27, the game showed the two teams' desire to make up for their having to miss the regular high school state tournament this year.
During the top of the first, Viking center fielder Stephen Rockhill picked off fly balls hit by Kyle Hall and Ben Beddes. Rockhill's catches helped Pleasant Grove neutralize impacts from singles that Cavemen Jeremy Reynolds and Colton Dunn whacked out into left. Viking pitcher Mitch Dahl struck out Tyler "Flint" Flinders to hold the Cavemen scoreless.
A "cousin" of Hank Hill of King of the Hill fame, pitcher Aaron Hill, in the bottom of the first, caused Bo Caldwell to fly out to left fielder Taylor Tonks and Calder "Blue" Bonnett to ground out to second baseman Flinders. Though Hill walked Colby Croft, a throw from catcher Colt "Fig" Whatcott to Flinders grounded the Viking out.
Viking third baseman Broc Starr began the top of the second with grounding out Ryan Draper. In response, Whatcott drilled a single deep into left, and he stole second. A Tonks double scored him. After Nate Robinson got beaned by a Dahl pitcher, Hall doubled in two runs. Reynolds hit a double himself, and catcher Croft tagged Tonks while the Caveman tried coming home on that hit. With Dahl grounding out Beddes, the Vikings attempted to stage a rally in the bottom of the second. Despite Ryland Peterson hitting a two-out single that inning, center fielder Hall picked off a Dahl fly ball to hold the Vikings scoreless.
Pleasant Grove didn't let American Fork put any runners on base during the top of the third. This feat quickly tipped the game to the Vikings' favor. Hit by Terry Cardon, a right-field double spurred Pleasant Grove into loading the bases on one out. Bonnett singled in Cardon and Rhett Rickanbach to start a five-run rally. Croft homered in three runs, putting the Vikings ahead 5-3.
The Cavemen didn't stay behind during the top of the fourth. Singles from Tonks and Whatchott permited a Hall, sacrifice groundout scored a run. Beddes singled Tonks in to tie the game at five.
Taking over at the mound during the bottom of the fourth, Dunn struck out Cardon, only to give up a double to Whitely and a single to Rickanback. Dunn soon picked Whiteley off at third, but the pick-off play couldn't keep the Vikings from rowing ahead. Caldwell hit a one-run single to put the Vikings ahead 6-5.
After Dahl had held American Fork scoreless in the top of the fifth, Dunn remained a tough pitcher for the Vikings to handle. The inning's lower half opened with the reliever striking out Rockhill and grounding out Peterson. Dahl hit a left-field double off Dunn, and Cardon hit an infield single that gave the Vikings expectations of scoring further runs in the fifth. Those expectations proved to be false, for Dunn picked Cardon off at first.
Doubling at the start of the sixth, Tonks soon came home on Hall's one-out double to tie the game at six. Dunn singled Hall in to tip American Fork ahead 7-6.
American Fork's new lead couldn't survive the sixth. In the bottom of it, Bonnett hit a two-run double, then stole home, putting the Vikings ahead 9-7.
With the seventh opening on a Draper single, the Cavemen quickly found themselves in deeper trouble as they saw Whatcott and Tonks both fly out. Left-field singles from Hall and Robinson permitted American Fork to load the bases. A Reynolds walk and a Beddes single each reeled in a run, tying the game at nine. Dahl struck out Dunn before the Cavemen could pull ahead. Dunn fanned two of the three batters that the Vikings sent against him in the bottom of the seventh.
After all the trouble the Cavemen had gone through to force an eighth inning, they saw their comeback efforts collapse through three quick outs. Walked by reliever Tonks in the bottom of the eighth, Jesse De St. Jour soon got moved to third by Caldwell's center-field single. Cort Iorg singled De St. Jour in for the winning run.
The Pleasant Grove won three more game at home, earning a right to play the Spanish Fork Dons in a semifinal at Spanish Fork's Don Swenson Field August 3. The Dons had a gay time in taking down the Vikings 5-1. Spanish Fork Coach Burt Reynolds said, "Hayden Nelson didn't give up many hits as he threw all seven innings for us. We had good defense and timely hits. We got doubles from Jim Lingle and Andy Perkins. We had a third-to-first double play that ended an inning."
T-Pups Finish Summer Baseball Season With 12-2 Win Over Lehi
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
The Utah Baseball Academy League playoffs weren't the only post-season, summer high school baseball tournaments being played last week. The Varsity League had its own post-season tournament, also.
The first two days of it involved pool play. In the first day of their pool, the Lehi Pioneers washed away the Westlake Thunder, AKA the Shockers, and the Salem Hills Skyhawks, AKA Sky Tweeties, in games at Pioneer Field July 27. However, in Orem on July 28, the Timpanogos Timberwolves, alias the T-Pups, dried up Lehi 16-6. Because the Pioneers had scored more runs in pool play than Timpanogos did, the T-Pups couldn't go on to the championship game, which got played at Pioneer Field July 29. Still, the win did give Kim Nelson, the T-Pups' head coach some satisfaction.
Nelson said, "We had not been scoring very much in the tournament. Today, we did make a lot of runs, though. Our first pitcher threw very well in the first four innings. The key for us today were our hitting and scoring."
Timpanogos pitcher Dave McAllister held the Pioneers scoreless during the first three innings. In the meantime, the T-Pups took a 5-0 lead in the first two innings. McAllister opened the game's scoring by hitting a one-run single in the bottom of the first. A Jason Fullmer sacrifice groundout scored J.D. Ashman.
Timpanogos' 2-0 lead came under a serious threat in the top of the second when Pioneer Rem Worthen doubled into left and teammate Trevor Jeppson singled into left. Third baseman Kallin Ashby turned up a double play that set Lehi's scoring efforts back until the fourth.
Ashby singled in Brooks Folwer, and a Pioneer error let two T-Pups race home, putting the lead at 5-0.
Lehi pitcher T.J. Russon held Timpanogos scoreless in the third. Walked by McAllister in the top of the fourth, Bronson Anderson soon scored the first Lehi run on an error.
One-run singles hit by T.J. Beveridge and Tyler Hamilton stretched the Timpanogos lead to 7-1, causing Russon to be replaced by Justin Higgins at the mound. Third baseman Jeppson's catch of a Fullmer fly ball delayed the Timberpups from putting the game way that inning.
Singling into left at the start of the fifth, Pioneer Kaidyn Longman came home on Palmer Page's two-out single. McAllister didn't let the Pioneers gain anything from Page's RBI. The pitcher grounded out Worthen.
The T-Pups loaded the bases on no outs in the bottom of the fifth. Beveridge cleared the bases with a double he hit into left. He attempted to turn his hit into a triple, but Jeppson tagged him while the Timberwolf was sliding into base.
The Pioneers finally got a rally going in the sixth, which opened with a Jeppson single hit into left. T.J. Griffith singled Jeppson in to start a four-run rally. After a Higgins single had scored Griffith, Russon hit a two-run triple, causing McAllister to be replaced at the mound by Beveridge. The reliever struck out Page, then snatched an Anderson pop fly, ending the rally.
On one out in the bottom of the sixth, Fullmer singled in McAllister to open the five-run rally that knocked Lehi out. During the rally, the Timberwolves soon loaded bases. This permitted a McAllister walk to score the game-ending run.
Wasatch Wasps Buzz Past Lehi 8-6 In 8-Inning, Title Game July 29
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
Played at Lehi's Pioneer Field July 29, the Varsity League championship game lived up to its name as it saw the Lehi Pioneers and Wasatch Wasps, AKA the Bugs, battle for eight innings for the privilege to finish the season as the league's first champ. The contest ended with Wasatch winning 8-6.
Wasatch Coach Mike Shoell said, "We never gave up in this game. It gave us the kind of experience needed for next spring. All summer, we've played both 4-A and 5-A teams, and we did well against them. This will help us a lot in our 3-A league and state tournament next year."
Shoell is a longtime, familiar figure in the Utah Valley sports scene. He was an assistant baseball coach at Pleasant Grove when Jon Hoover mentored the Ferocious Vikings. Shoell was also the head coach for the Lone Peak Knights, AKA the Loners, and the American Fork Cavemen. So, he felt quite at home while his Wasps played on the Pioneer diamond.
Through a Trevor Bammy single, the Wasps loaded the bases on one out in the top of the first. A Curtis Duke walk scored Shane Richins. Pitcher Tyson Bringhurst kept the Wasps from carrying out a stinging rally by delivering a throw to catcher Rem Worthen to force Bammy out and catching a Nate Thompson pop fly.
Despite T.J. Russon slugging a single in the bottom of the first, pitcher Payton Davis held the Pioneers scoreless in the first two innings. With Wasatch unable to pick up a second run in the second and third innings, the Pioneers took control of the lead in the bottom of the third. Singles from Russon and Palmer Page set the stage for the takeover. A Bronson Anderson sacrifice groundout scored Russon, and Trevor Jeppson singled Page in for the go-ahead run.
Two fourth-inning, Lehi errors permitted the Wasps to walk ahead during the top of the fourth. The first mistake resulted in Wasatch loading the bases on one out. The next error let Thompson come home, starting a four-run rally, which saw the Wasps score three straight runs on walks.
Walked by Davis in the fifth, Anderson came home on a Jeppson single, and Lehi soon loaded the bases on two outs. An infield error let Worthen and Jeppson race home, cutting the lead to 6-5.
Lehi held Wasatch scoreless in the sixth, and in the bottom of that inning, Russon stole home to force the game into an eighth inning.
With Richins getting on base through an eighth-inning walk, Bammy singled him, then came came home on a Davis single. After having regained the lead, the Wasps didn't let the Pioneers put any runners on base during the bottom of the eighth.
Lehi acting head coach Pat Day said, "We battled hard and didn't quit, even though they were ahead of us 6-2 at one point. We scored four runs that forced the extra inning. We made a couple of little errors that hurt us tonight."
August 4, 2009
Publisher's Message
In high school-level baseball, eight-inning games carry a lot of excitement. That was the case in two of the stories covered in this issue. One of those games involved the American Fork Cavemen and the Ferocious Pleasant Grove Vikings. The other eight-inning game was the Varsity League championship game between the Lehi Pioneers and the Wasatch Wasps, AKA the Bugs. Another baseball story that we will look is a playoff game that saw the Timpanogos Timberwolves, AKA T-Pups, drained Lehi by 10 runs. Let's get to those games.
Dean Von Memmott
Publisher
deanmemmott@hotmail.com
Ferocious PG Vikings Win 10-9 over AF Cavebatters in UBAL Playoff Game
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
It took the Ferocious Pleasant Grove Vikings eight innings to take down the American Fork Cavemen 10-9 in an opening-round, playoff game for the Utah Baseball Academy League's 17-under division pennant.
Played on Viking Field July 27, the game showed the two teams' desire to make up for their having to miss the regular high school state tournament this year.
During the top of the first, Viking center fielder Stephen Rockhill picked off fly balls hit by Kyle Hall and Ben Beddes. Rockhill's catches helped Pleasant Grove neutralize impacts from singles that Cavemen Jeremy Reynolds and Colton Dunn whacked out into left. Viking pitcher Mitch Dahl struck out Tyler "Flint" Flinders to hold the Cavemen scoreless.
A "cousin" of Hank Hill of King of the Hill fame, pitcher Aaron Hill, in the bottom of the first, caused Bo Caldwell to fly out to left fielder Taylor Tonks and Calder "Blue" Bonnett to ground out to second baseman Flinders. Though Hill walked Colby Croft, a throw from catcher Colt "Fig" Whatcott to Flinders grounded the Viking out.
Viking third baseman Broc Starr began the top of the second with grounding out Ryan Draper. In response, Whatcott drilled a single deep into left, and he stole second. A Tonks double scored him. After Nate Robinson got beaned by a Dahl pitcher, Hall doubled in two runs. Reynolds hit a double himself, and catcher Croft tagged Tonks while the Caveman tried coming home on that hit. With Dahl grounding out Beddes, the Vikings attempted to stage a rally in the bottom of the second. Despite Ryland Peterson hitting a two-out single that inning, center fielder Hall picked off a Dahl fly ball to hold the Vikings scoreless.
Pleasant Grove didn't let American Fork put any runners on base during the top of the third. This feat quickly tipped the game to the Vikings' favor. Hit by Terry Cardon, a right-field double spurred Pleasant Grove into loading the bases on one out. Bonnett singled in Cardon and Rhett Rickanbach to start a five-run rally. Croft homered in three runs, putting the Vikings ahead 5-3.
The Cavemen didn't stay behind during the top of the fourth. Singles from Tonks and Whatchott permited a Hall, sacrifice groundout scored a run. Beddes singled Tonks in to tie the game at five.
Taking over at the mound during the bottom of the fourth, Dunn struck out Cardon, only to give up a double to Whitely and a single to Rickanback. Dunn soon picked Whiteley off at third, but the pick-off play couldn't keep the Vikings from rowing ahead. Caldwell hit a one-run single to put the Vikings ahead 6-5.
After Dahl had held American Fork scoreless in the top of the fifth, Dunn remained a tough pitcher for the Vikings to handle. The inning's lower half opened with the reliever striking out Rockhill and grounding out Peterson. Dahl hit a left-field double off Dunn, and Cardon hit an infield single that gave the Vikings expectations of scoring further runs in the fifth. Those expectations proved to be false, for Dunn picked Cardon off at first.
Doubling at the start of the sixth, Tonks soon came home on Hall's one-out double to tie the game at six. Dunn singled Hall in to tip American Fork ahead 7-6.
American Fork's new lead couldn't survive the sixth. In the bottom of it, Bonnett hit a two-run double, then stole home, putting the Vikings ahead 9-7.
With the seventh opening on a Draper single, the Cavemen quickly found themselves in deeper trouble as they saw Whatcott and Tonks both fly out. Left-field singles from Hall and Robinson permitted American Fork to load the bases. A Reynolds walk and a Beddes single each reeled in a run, tying the game at nine. Dahl struck out Dunn before the Cavemen could pull ahead. Dunn fanned two of the three batters that the Vikings sent against him in the bottom of the seventh.
After all the trouble the Cavemen had gone through to force an eighth inning, they saw their comeback efforts collapse through three quick outs. Walked by reliever Tonks in the bottom of the eighth, Jesse De St. Jour soon got moved to third by Caldwell's center-field single. Cort Iorg singled De St. Jour in for the winning run.
The Pleasant Grove won three more game at home, earning a right to play the Spanish Fork Dons in a semifinal at Spanish Fork's Don Swenson Field August 3. The Dons had a gay time in taking down the Vikings 5-1. Spanish Fork Coach Burt Reynolds said, "Hayden Nelson didn't give up many hits as he threw all seven innings for us. We had good defense and timely hits. We got doubles from Jim Lingle and Andy Perkins. We had a third-to-first double play that ended an inning."
T-Pups Finish Summer Baseball Season With 12-2 Win Over Lehi
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
The Utah Baseball Academy League playoffs weren't the only post-season, summer high school baseball tournaments being played last week. The Varsity League had its own post-season tournament, also.
The first two days of it involved pool play. In the first day of their pool, the Lehi Pioneers washed away the Westlake Thunder, AKA the Shockers, and the Salem Hills Skyhawks, AKA Sky Tweeties, in games at Pioneer Field July 27. However, in Orem on July 28, the Timpanogos Timberwolves, alias the T-Pups, dried up Lehi 16-6. Because the Pioneers had scored more runs in pool play than Timpanogos did, the T-Pups couldn't go on to the championship game, which got played at Pioneer Field July 29. Still, the win did give Kim Nelson, the T-Pups' head coach some satisfaction.
Nelson said, "We had not been scoring very much in the tournament. Today, we did make a lot of runs, though. Our first pitcher threw very well in the first four innings. The key for us today were our hitting and scoring."
Timpanogos pitcher Dave McAllister held the Pioneers scoreless during the first three innings. In the meantime, the T-Pups took a 5-0 lead in the first two innings. McAllister opened the game's scoring by hitting a one-run single in the bottom of the first. A Jason Fullmer sacrifice groundout scored J.D. Ashman.
Timpanogos' 2-0 lead came under a serious threat in the top of the second when Pioneer Rem Worthen doubled into left and teammate Trevor Jeppson singled into left. Third baseman Kallin Ashby turned up a double play that set Lehi's scoring efforts back until the fourth.
Ashby singled in Brooks Folwer, and a Pioneer error let two T-Pups race home, putting the lead at 5-0.
Lehi pitcher T.J. Russon held Timpanogos scoreless in the third. Walked by McAllister in the top of the fourth, Bronson Anderson soon scored the first Lehi run on an error.
One-run singles hit by T.J. Beveridge and Tyler Hamilton stretched the Timpanogos lead to 7-1, causing Russon to be replaced by Justin Higgins at the mound. Third baseman Jeppson's catch of a Fullmer fly ball delayed the Timberpups from putting the game way that inning.
Singling into left at the start of the fifth, Pioneer Kaidyn Longman came home on Palmer Page's two-out single. McAllister didn't let the Pioneers gain anything from Page's RBI. The pitcher grounded out Worthen.
The T-Pups loaded the bases on no outs in the bottom of the fifth. Beveridge cleared the bases with a double he hit into left. He attempted to turn his hit into a triple, but Jeppson tagged him while the Timberwolf was sliding into base.
The Pioneers finally got a rally going in the sixth, which opened with a Jeppson single hit into left. T.J. Griffith singled Jeppson in to start a four-run rally. After a Higgins single had scored Griffith, Russon hit a two-run triple, causing McAllister to be replaced at the mound by Beveridge. The reliever struck out Page, then snatched an Anderson pop fly, ending the rally.
On one out in the bottom of the sixth, Fullmer singled in McAllister to open the five-run rally that knocked Lehi out. During the rally, the Timberwolves soon loaded bases. This permitted a McAllister walk to score the game-ending run.
Wasatch Wasps Buzz Past Lehi 8-6 In 8-Inning, Title Game July 29
By Dean Von Memmott
Timp Sports Weekly Publisher
Played at Lehi's Pioneer Field July 29, the Varsity League championship game lived up to its name as it saw the Lehi Pioneers and Wasatch Wasps, AKA the Bugs, battle for eight innings for the privilege to finish the season as the league's first champ. The contest ended with Wasatch winning 8-6.
Wasatch Coach Mike Shoell said, "We never gave up in this game. It gave us the kind of experience needed for next spring. All summer, we've played both 4-A and 5-A teams, and we did well against them. This will help us a lot in our 3-A league and state tournament next year."
Shoell is a longtime, familiar figure in the Utah Valley sports scene. He was an assistant baseball coach at Pleasant Grove when Jon Hoover mentored the Ferocious Vikings. Shoell was also the head coach for the Lone Peak Knights, AKA the Loners, and the American Fork Cavemen. So, he felt quite at home while his Wasps played on the Pioneer diamond.
Through a Trevor Bammy single, the Wasps loaded the bases on one out in the top of the first. A Curtis Duke walk scored Shane Richins. Pitcher Tyson Bringhurst kept the Wasps from carrying out a stinging rally by delivering a throw to catcher Rem Worthen to force Bammy out and catching a Nate Thompson pop fly.
Despite T.J. Russon slugging a single in the bottom of the first, pitcher Payton Davis held the Pioneers scoreless in the first two innings. With Wasatch unable to pick up a second run in the second and third innings, the Pioneers took control of the lead in the bottom of the third. Singles from Russon and Palmer Page set the stage for the takeover. A Bronson Anderson sacrifice groundout scored Russon, and Trevor Jeppson singled Page in for the go-ahead run.
Two fourth-inning, Lehi errors permitted the Wasps to walk ahead during the top of the fourth. The first mistake resulted in Wasatch loading the bases on one out. The next error let Thompson come home, starting a four-run rally, which saw the Wasps score three straight runs on walks.
Walked by Davis in the fifth, Anderson came home on a Jeppson single, and Lehi soon loaded the bases on two outs. An infield error let Worthen and Jeppson race home, cutting the lead to 6-5.
Lehi held Wasatch scoreless in the sixth, and in the bottom of that inning, Russon stole home to force the game into an eighth inning.
With Richins getting on base through an eighth-inning walk, Bammy singled him, then came came home on a Davis single. After having regained the lead, the Wasps didn't let the Pioneers put any runners on base during the bottom of the eighth.
Lehi acting head coach Pat Day said, "We battled hard and didn't quit, even though they were ahead of us 6-2 at one point. We scored four runs that forced the extra inning. We made a couple of little errors that hurt us tonight."
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