Blackhawks drop GNL baseball game to Clarkston

The Cheney High baseball team continued their rollercoaster season with an 8-5 Great Northern League loss to Clarkston, April 5.

Down 1-0, the Bantams scored two runs in the second inning to take the lead. Cheney surged ahead taking a 4-3 lead after scoring a run in the third inning and two in the fourth. Clarkston put up five more runs in the bottom of the fourth inning to take the lead from there. The Blackhawks capped their scoring with one run in the sixth.

Head coach Mike Cagle noted that Clarkston, (5-1 GNL, 6-1) is similar to his team from last year in that they are starting the season strong.

"They're making plays at the right time and everything, but there's nothing about them that makes me say 'I don't want to play them,'" Cagle said.

At the plate, Chance Gleave went 2-for-2 with three RBIs. Riley Jones had two hits with one double and scored three runs while Cade VanWormer had two hits. Andrew Witt added a double while Trey Martin had one hit.

Matthew Riggs (0-1) took the loss on the mound after he took over for Jackson Shaw in the fourth inning. Cameron Wiseman started the game.

Despite the loss, Cagle said he was not disappointed with his team and feels they are "right where we need to be."

"It would have been nice to pick up a couple of more wins," Cagle said. "We just need to get it together by the end of April."

The Blackhawks (3-3, 5-5) dropped to third place in the league standings behind West Valley (3-2, 5-2).

Cagle added that the team has plenty of "fixable things we can work on."

"If we can get it together, we can be pretty competitive," he said.

Cheney played fifth-place Pullman (1-5, 1-7) in a league doubleheader April 12. They travel to East Valley to play the fourth-place Knights (2-3, 2-5) in a league doubleheader April 16.

"Pullman is always good in the second half of the season and East Valley has a couple of guys who can get after you," Cagle said. "No game is free (in this league), no matter what the records say."

Al Stover can be reached at al@cheneyfreepress.com.