OC ran into a hot-hitting Tacoma team over the weekend, falling in all four contests—two on the road Friday and two more at home Saturday. Game 1 at Tacoma opened with a flurry of offense from Tacoma who never looked back to win 16-6. The Ranger defense was uncharacteristically poor Game 2 was a nail-biter, with the Rangers jumping out to a 5-2 lead. After giving it back and going down one, a Harris triple in the 7th lead to the tying run. Tacoma was able to muster a walk-off single in the bottom of the frame, sending the Rangers home heartbroken, but motivated for revenge on Saturday.
Returning home on Saturday, the Rangers fought hard in game one taking a 2-2 tie into the 7th. Alas, they couldn't contain Tacoma's offense, dropping Game 3 by a score of 14-2. Game 4 saw strong early defense, but the Titans eventually broke through to take a 10-0 win. Despite the weekend sweep, Olympic experienced moments of strong play and will continue to fight as they move into the final few weeks of league play. The Rangers (12-22) will look to bounce back this weekend with 4 against Pierce, home on Saturday and away on Sunday.
Friday, April 18 vs. Tacoma College
Game 1: Rangers 6, Tacoma 16
Offense: 6 runs [Brown (2)], 5 hits [Loverink, Matthew, Angelos, Brown, Castro], 5 RBI [Angelos (2)], 1 double [Castro], 8 walks [Brown (2)]
Defense: 7.1 IP [Fukuda (2.1), Richey (4.2), Berg (0.1)], 11 earned runs [Fukuda (8), Berg (3)], 12 hits allowed [Fukuda (9), Richey (2), Berg (1)], 5 strikeouts [Richey (3)], 7 walks allowed [Berg (5)], 8 errors [Matthew (2), Corpuz (2)]
Game 2: Rangers 7, Tacoma 8
Offense: 7 runs [Harris (3)], 11 hits [Castro (2), Hecker (2), Elton (2)], 4 RBI [Matthew (2)], 9 walks [Loverink (2, Matthew (2), Imai (2)], 1 double [Imai], 2 triples [Harris, Elton], 5 steals [Castro, Shaffer, Matthew, Imai, Elton]
Defense: 6 IP [Crowley (5), Burke (1)], 8 earned runs [Crowley (7), Burke (1)], 9 hits allowed [Crowley (6), Burke (3)], 11 strikeouts [Crowley (9), Burke (2)], 5 walks allowed [Crowley (4), Burke (1)]
Saturday, April 19 vs. Tacoma College
Game 1: Rangers 2, Tacoma 14
Offense: 2 runs [Shaffer, Matthew], 5 hits [Loverink, Shaffer, Matthew, Brown, Castro], 2 RBI [Brown, Castro], 1 walk [Imai], 1 steal [Shaffer]
Defense: 9 IP [Stenerson (7.2), Nicholson (1.1)], 13 earned runs [Stenerson (10), Nicholson (3)], 20 hits allowed [Stenerson (15), Nicholson (5)], 6 strikeouts [Stenerson (5), Nicholson (1)], 1 walk allowed [Stenerson], 3 errors [Castro (2), Imai]
Game 2: Rangers 0, Tacoma 10
Offense: 4 hits [Loverink, Matthew, Batalona, Putman]
Defense: 6 IP [Spitzer (3.0), Tordiffe (1.0), Corpuz (1.0), Burke (1.0)], 9 earned runs [Spitzer (1), Tordiffe (4), Corpuz (3), Burke (1)], 10 hits allowed [Spitzer (1), Tordiffe (4), Corpuz (3), Burke (2)], 7 strikeouts [Spitzer (3), Corpuz (2), Burke (2)], 9 walks allowed [Spitzer (4), Tordiffe (2), Corpuz (3)], 1 error [Hecker]
