Ranked foes too tough for Dawgs to overcome

Now 0-8 in Mountain Valley Conference play, the Creswell Bulldogs were foiled again last week in their pursuit of a league baseball win against some of the toughest teams in 3A state. The Dawgs were 10-runned 13-3 in six innings by visiting Harrisburg on April 30 and fell 6-1 to host Santiam Christian on May 2.
Against 11th-ranked Harrisburg, “errors were the story of the game,” said Creswell Head Coach Tyler Main. “Harrisburg took advantages of our mistakes in the second inning and scored nine. After that, we settled in and played great baseball.”
Gio Mediati opened on the mound for the Bulldogs, striking out one in 1 1/3 innings. “He pitched great, giving up ground balls and pop flies,” Main said, “but our defense did not help him.”
Dallton Dewey pitched the remaining 4 2/3 innings, striking out eight and walking two. “He came in and pitched great,” Main said.
From the plate, Levi Bones went 1-for-3 with a double and a run. Nick Kubishta went 1-for-2 with two RBIs and a run; and Dean Howard went 1-for-3 and scored.
At Santiam Christian, the fourth-ranked Eagles were able to capitalize on the absence of four Bulldog starters to take control of the game.
Camrin Marple pitched the first 2 2/3 innings, giving up three earned runs and striking out three.
Howard pitched the final 3 1/3 innings, giving up two earned runs and striking out seven.
Marple went 2-for-3 from the plate, Howard had a sacrifice fly for an RBI, and Dewey scored a run.
Despite the loss, Main said he was generally pleased with his team’s effort and performance against such a highly ranked team, while missing four key players.
“It was a great game for us,” he said. “Our inexperience showed in parts of the game, which was the difference.”
This week, the Bulldogs face two more challenging opponents as they travel to take on second-ranked La Pine and host top-ranked Pleasant Hill.
“We have the toughest league in the state, with three teams ranked in the top five, so to be competitive we’ve got to play our best game in every game,” Main said.