CRESWELL – Hitting had been a strength for the Creswell Bulldogs during their four-game winning streak, but Thursday, pitching and defense carried the load in a 6-0 victory over South Umpqua to finish the Creswell Invitational tournament 3-0.
In the top of the seventh inning with one out, South Umpqua pinch hitter Jackson Causey hit a low fly ball between shortstop Colton Hartman and left fielder Carson Clark. Both were somewhat tentative in their pursuit, not sure who should call it, and it found grass for a single.
“It’s a ball we should have had. It was a good one to have come up because we learned from it,” said Bulldogs head coach Kevin Feist. “We’ll work on it in practice, and hopefully the next time that happens, it’s an out.”
Some of the Bulldogs may not have known it, but that was the Lancers’ first hit of the game. In large part, the defense behind the two Bulldog pitchers was excellent. The highlight play was a running grab by sophomore Braden Hartman in right-center field. Feist explained the potential impact if the ball had been a hit.
“That’s the first hitter of the inning. It’s a 5-0 game at that time. If that goes as a triple, you got a guy on third and no outs, it’s a different inning. But we got the momentum of a great play, and we ended up getting out of that inning,” he said.
Great defensive plays are a necessity in any bid for a no hitter. There are an abundance of examples of heroic plays made by defenders to preserve a no-hitter or perfect game. At the major league level, Gregor Blanco’s diving catch during Matt Cain’s perfect game and Steven Souza’s over-the-shoulder catch for the final out of Jordan Zimmerman’s no-hitter are two recent examples.
Playing ‘little ball’
The Lancers, in contrast, made things difficult on themselves. Two errors, six walks, and multiple other mishaps by the Lancers allowed the Bulldogs to play the “little ball” game that Feist emphasizes. In a three-batter stretch, the Bulldogs scored a run when the throw back from catcher to pitcher was fumbled, scored another on a throwing error after Gavin Crowl laid down a bunt, and scored a third on a sacrifice fly. That took the lead from 2-0 to 5-0, giving starter Jaxon Pelham a healthy cushion.
“We definitely want to find different ways that we can put the pressure on defense with our team speed,” Feist said. “Little ball is going to be really important for us, especially when you’re playing the top teams in your league with good pitching. Most of the time good pitching beats good hitting, so we’ve got to be able to find ways to scratch runs across and be gritty and battle.”
Pelham didn’t need much, as he was locating his curveball and fastball well and keeping the Lancers guessing. He finished his day after 4 1/3 innings, with no hits allowed and six strikeouts, showing why he was a first-team all-Mountain Valley Conference pitcher last season.
He was pulled in the fifth inning after walking two of the first three batters of the inning, and Feist brought in Cottage Grove transfer Landon Vaughn to replace him. Vaughn worked more efficiently, throwing only 30 pitches and “pitching to contact” rather than going for the strikeout, a typical strategy with a comfortable lead. His defense made the strategy work, and Vaughn was able to pitch the last 2 2/3 innings, allowing only one hit and striking out three.
The offense largely came from being aggressive and capitalizing on mistakes, but Hartman delivered the Bulldogs one big hit to get the scoring started. An RBI triple to the opposite field scored Kayden Roberts to put the Bulldogs ahead 1-0. Hartman also galvanized the Bulldogs offense in Wednesday’s game against Brookings-Harbor. With the game tied 3-3 in the 6th inning, Hartman hit a two-run home run to put his team up 5-3. That hit came with two outs in the inning, and the Bulldogs would score eight more runs in that frame before the Bruins could get the final out.
“That was a clutch hit in a clutch situation, and it just lit a fire,” Feist said.
Last year, Hartman was a first-team all-conference selection, and is no stranger to coming through in the big moments.
“Colton’s a clutch hitter. He had two or three walk-off wins for us last year. He’s a guy I want up when we need a clutch run. His teammates and everybody have a huge amount of confidence in him in that situation, and he has confidence in that situation, and he usually gets the job done.”
After losing their opener to Marist Catholic, the Bulldogs have won five in a row. Tuesday’s opening game of the tournament was a wet, and in Feist’s words, “miserable, horrible game.” His team came away with a 17-14 victory on the back of 21 walks and nine stolen bases.
The versatility the Bulldogs have shown early in the season bodes well for a second straight playoff run after not making it since 2009 previously.
