6-run inning helps CDA hand Sandpoint first loss
Junior third baseman Zeke Roop prepares to make a throw toward first base Thursday at War Memorial Field.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Sophomore Jack Zimmerman pitches during Thursday's game against Coeur d'Alene.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Senior Cameron Garcia looks to steal a base on Thursday.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Junior first baseman Ethan Butler stretches out to secure a catch and an out on Thursday.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Senior Max Thielbahr crosses home plate on a throwing error by Coeur d'Alene on March 25 at War Memorial Field.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Senior Avery Bocksch pitches during Thursday's game.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Senior Trevor Brackett collides with a Coeur d'Alene player while trying to steal second base on Thursday.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Ethan Butler stands in the batter's box during Thursday's game against Coeur d'Alene at War Memorial Field. He hit a grand slam and had six RBIs in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader at Moscow.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Senior Evan Williams prepares to swing on Thursday.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Jack Zimmerman tags out a Coeur d'Alene runner trying to steal home on Thursday.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Cody Newhart stands in the batter's box during a game against Coeur d'Alene on March 25 at War Memorial Field.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
Max Thielbahr rounds third base and sprints toward home to score a run on Thursday.
(Photo by DYLAN GREENE)
SANDPOINT — It all came down to one inning on Thursday at War Memorial Field, and unfortunately the Bulldogs were on the wrong end of it.
Coeur d'Alene scored six runs in the top of the third inning and held off a late comeback attempt by Sandpoint baseball to secure a 7-4 Inland Empire League win, and hand the Bulldogs their first loss of the season.
A triple, a single, a groundout and a pair of errors allowed the Vikings to gain control of the game in the third.
"We just honestly gave it to them, it was all free bags," Sandpoint head coach Chase Tigert said about the runs in the inning. "There were ground balls that are routine outs that we bobbled and we didn't turn a double play ... Coeur d'Alene is a good team and they are going to take advantage of that."
Senior Avery Bocksch started on the mound for SHS and was dominant early. He struck out three batters across the first two innings and held the Vikings scoreless.
But in the third, the Vikings were able to get on base and Coeur d'Alene head coach Erik Karns said that was the key to get some runs on the board against Bocksch.
"We put the ball in play and that was it," Karns said, "and that's a very tough kid to hit off of ... and our guys were stymied for a couple innings, so for us to put the ball in play in that inning was huge."
The outburst erased a 1-0 Sandpoint lead that was earned in the bottom of the first on a throwing error by the Vikings.
The Bulldogs didn't give up after the six-run inning and responded in the bottom of the third when a bases-loaded walk scored Max Thielbahr. But Sandpoint was unable to muster anymore runs with one out and the bases loaded, and CDA carried a 6-2 lead into the fourth.
The Vikings added another run in the fifth and led 7-2 entering the bottom of the seventh inning. But the Bulldogs continued their efforts to mount a comeback.
After a double by Cody Newhart and a single by Thielbahr, the Bulldogs had runners on the corners with one out and Ethan Butler at the plate. On the first pitch of the at-bat, Thielbahr stole second which allowed Newhart to walk in for a stolen base at home. Then after Thielbahr stole third, Butler hit a sacrifice fly to score him and make the score 7-4 in favor of the Vikings with two outs.
After an Evan Williams walk, Cameron Garcia came to the plate looking to add to the Sandpoint rally. Garcia scorched a ball to left field, but a Coeur d'Alene outfielder was able to get underneath it and end the Bulldogs' hopes of a comeback.
Sandpoint seemed to be unfazed by the six-run outburst and kept trying to find a way to chip away at the Vikings' advantage. After the game, Tigert was really proud of the fight his team showed.
"It was great," he said. "You give someone six runs in an inning, most teams are just going to roll over, and we didn't."
It was Sandpoint's first game since March 16 after having last Thursday's contest at Timberlake canceled due to poor field conditions. Tigert said his team wasn't rusty, they just had a bad inning.
"That's the kicker with this game is you give up crooked numbers, it puts you in a little bit of a hole," he said.
Despite the loss, Bocksch lasted 4 2/3 innings and allowed just two earned runs. Tigert said Bocksch was dealing and he had his stuff, but they just couldn't back him up defensively.
"That was a bummer too because he threw well enough to win the game," he said. "He threw strikes, he got ground balls; you can't ask a pitcher to do much more than that."
Sophomore Jack Zimmerman came on in relief and went the rest of the way, striking out one and walking two.
Thielbahr had a huge day for the Bulldogs. He went 3 for 4, scored three runs and stole five bases.
John Gwaltney got the win for Coeur d'Alene. He struck out seven across 4 2/3 innings of work.
Across the board, Tigert said he saw something positive from everyone on Thursday and he knows they won't let this loss get them down.
"The season is a marathon and we're in a good position," he said, "and we're just going to keep doing what we do day in and day out, and keep getting better ... This doesn't define who we are."
Sandpoint (2-1, 2-1 IEL) heads to Moscow on Saturday for a doubleheader that starts at noon.
Coeur d'Alene 006 0100 — 7 7 2
Sandpoint 101 0002 — 4 6 3
Avery Bocksch, Jack Zimmerman (5) and Trevor Brackett; Jayden Rowley, John Gwaltney (3) and Wade Mallory. W — Gwaltney. L — Bocksch.
HITS: CDA — Bridge 2, Paddack 2, Schneider, Stockton, E. Mallory. SHS — Thielbahr 3, Newhart, Williams, Garcia. 2B — Newhart. 3B — Paddack.
