I-5 Toyota Digs Early Hole in 21-3 Loss to LCBC

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After two scoreless innings between host I-5 Toyota/Mountain Dew and visiting Lower Columbia Baseball Club’s Hilander Dental (AAA), the visitors pounded out 21 hits on the way to a 21-3 win in senior legion action Tuesday at Wheeler Field.

“We’ve been a roller coaster,” LCBC skipper Joe Bair said. “Like, we started out 2-0 in the College Showcase, and then we lost a game we probably should have won and then we got 10-runned on Sunday, so for us it’s just about being consistent.”

On Tuesday, though, the Dentists were able to put it all together over the course of seven innings before heading back south on I-5 with a confidence-boosting victory in hand.

“I think it started on the mound with Kolten Lindstrom,” Bair noted. “He went out there and it’s his second really good outing in a row. When you can go out and not walk guys, which our first three guys did, then you’re going to be successful.”

Indeed, Lindstrom was successful. Over three innings of work, the Naselle righty allowed three hits but no runs while striking out two batters and walking none.

“I was just trying to throw strikes because I knew I had a good defense behind me,” Lindstrom said, noting that he was able to weaponize his curveball/slider hybrid. “I was feeling my changeup pretty good today, too.”

After two scoreless innings for both sides to start the game, the LCBC squad put up a half dozen runs in the top of the third, setting up Lindstrom’s final half inning of dominance before the bullpen got involved.

That half inning of dominance started out with a walk to Duane Falls, who eventually moved up to second base on a passed ball. Justin Morris and Tegan Connors then coaxed walks to load the bases and Shayden Jones kept the trend going, milking a free pass to bring Falls home to score. Allen then ripped a single down the left field line to score Morris and Connors before Ryan Cooney bounced a seeing-eye single up the middle to plate Jones.

A walk to Drew Miller in the next at bat finally brought an end to I-5 Toyota’s Hunter Lutman’s misadventure on the mound, but it was far from the end of the Dentists’ offensive onslaught. Hyde Parrish took over the pitching duties for I-5 Toyota/Mountain Dew and promptly tossed a passed ball to bring in one more run before walking Cothren to load the bases. When Falls chopped a ball to third base, it was fielded by Evan Stadjuhar, who promptly stepped on his bag and tossed it across the diamond, but the throw clipped off the corner of the first baseman’s mitt to allow one more run to score.



LCBC continued to make big noises with their bats and mouths the rest of the game, plating four runs in the fourth, six more in the fifth, three in the sixth and two in the seventh to land on black jack.

For I-5 Toyota/Mountain Dew, its offense first perked up in the fourth inning when it bunched up singles on Morris before he found his command. Jeron Martin was the only Toyota-Dew player to notch multiple hits on the day. Cole Wasson managed one hit and notched two RBIs in the contest. Hazen Hoffman, Tate Quarnstrom, Stadjuhar and Lane Sahlin each managed base knocks to account for the rest of the home team’s hits.

LCBC (9-12) will now pack their bags to head for Denver, where they hope to win a couple ballgames and watch in person as Mark Morris alum Bud Black manages the Colorado Rockies.

I-5 Toyota/Mountain Dew is scheduled to play Rural Baseball Inc. in a doubleheader at W.F. West starting at 1 p.m. on Saturday.

DENTISTS 21, I-5 3

LCBC 006 463 2  — 21 20 2

I-5 000 200 0 — 3 6 5

Batteries: LCBC — Kolten Lindstrom, Justin Morris (4), Drew Miller (6) and Jacobi Allen and Caron Ness (5). I-5 — Hunter Lutman, Hyde Parish (3), Von Wasson (5) and Jeron Martin.