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Irishtown News
First Round of 32 PLAYOFFS Monday May 22nd
Sheldon starts fast and holds on at the end for the big win against the favored Gophers of Gresham. Gresham tied for their league championship and was well known for their offensive exploits. However, league POY Alex Besaw held them in check, mostly, and the Irish returned home with the upset win. In the top of the 2nd, Besaw led off with a 2b and wound up scoring on Greg Wirtala's 2 out 2b, who in turn scored on Tyler Manley's 1b. In the third, Brandon Hayes stroked a 3-run bomb to deep center to put the Irish up 5-0. Besaw was cruising but in the 4th and the 6th, Gresham stud Justin Reeves banged 2 home runs to make the score 5-3. Sheldon tacked on another in the 7th when Tyler Martell doubled and then scored on a Micah McJunkin single. In the bottom of the 7th, Besaw hit 2 batters and was visably laboring and had to face Reeves again, who was the tying run. After Reeves took a huge hack and fouled off the first pitch, he was hit when he buckled his knee into a spliter that probably would have been a strike. With Gresham's number 4 at the plate as the game winning run, Besaw threw a first pitch fastball that was popped up to shallow center to end the game. Redmond visits Sheldon at 4:30 on Wednesday in the 3rd round.
Friday May 12th END OF LEAGUE Tied for second (Third
place MWL seed)
Sheldon 18 Springfield 2 In the top of the first, In the game, Wednesday May 10th Sheldon 4 Thurston 3 in 9 Innings Sheldon went into their game with Thurston knowing that a win would clinch at least the #3 spot in league and keep them in the running for the #2 spot if North was to falter. Brandon Hayes took the mound for the Irish and looked impressive early. Grant Willis toed the rubber and looked to be in trouble right away when Corey Moran singled and Tyler Martell was hit by a pitch. Micah McJunkin hit a shot to deep center but it was reeled in and then Alex Besaw pushed across is 20th league RBI on the season with a sac fly. However, the Irish were done and not to be heard from again for four more innings as Willis baffled them with an array of off-speed pitches and sneaky fastballs. In the fourth, Hayes walked two and then surrendered a 2-run triple to Chad Alber, and then Alber scored on a wild pitch. Hayes’ day was done after surrendering 3 runs (1 earned) on 2 hits, but 5 base on balls. Corey Moran came in to relieve and shut down the Colts the rest of the way notching 8ks and only giving up 3 singles. In the bottom of the 5th, Peter Jaeger led off with a single and Corey Moran followed with a sacrifice bunt that found it’s way through Willis’ legs putting runners at 1st and 3rd. Tyler Martell pulled a ground ball to the right side scoring Jaeger, then McJunkin singled to score Martell and knot the game up at 3-3. In the 6th, Willis was replaced by Straily, who was then replaced by Hunter in the 7th. While Moran held Thurston at bay, Hunter was holding his own giving the Irish hitters a steady diet of off-speed offerings. In the bottom of the 9th, Alex Besaw beat out an infield single with two outs. Brandon Hayes singled to center putting runners on 1st and 2nd. Caleb Carter hit a slow roller to third which was fielded cleanly by the Colt third bagger but was promptly thrown way over the 1st baseman’s head bringing home Besaw with the winning run. Another great high school game. Chad Alber had a 3b with 2 RBI, and Andrew Harris had 2 hits including a 2b Besaw was 4-4 with a RBI, and Micah McJunkin was 2-5 with a RBI Corey Moran threw 5 2/3 innings for the win. Hunter throws 3 innings and picks up the loss. Thurston had 5 errors Monday May 8th Sheldon 2 Willamette 1 Great pitchers dual between Alex Besaw and Friday May 5th Bye
Wednesday May 3rd
Sheldon 13 Churchill 9 9 innings Irish Eyes Churchill started off hot of Irish starter Brandon Hayes, scoring three in the 1st on two hits, while Sheldon looked to be suffering from a hangover from a hard fought game against North on Monday. After that, however, Hayes settled down and quieted the Lancer bats giving up only a single run in the third before being pulled in favor of Corey Moran in the bottom of the seventh. Lancer pitcher Drew Irsfeld was having his way with the Irish hitters through 4 innings giving up only two hits. However, the Irish bats woke up in the fifth and over the next five innings they tallied 15 hits. Going into the top of the 7th, the score was 4-3 Churchill with Irsfeld looking to close it out. Corey Moran was hit with the first pitch of the inning which prompted Churchill’s Erik Hoberg to make a pitching change. Jacob Franke entered with no out and Moran on first. Tyler Martell sacrificed Moran over to second to set up Sheldon’s 3 and 4 hitters with a chance to tie the ball game. After McJunkin grounded softly to short, Alex Besaw continued his hot streak by banging a 1-0 fastball over the wall in left. Sheldon took a 5-4 lead and headed to the bottom of the inning with upset on their mind. However, Churchill wasn’t quite finished. With 2 outs and runners at 1st and 2nd Drew Irsfeld banged a 1-2 slider to center to tie the game. So to the top of the 8th we went. In the inning Sheldon scored two more runs on 4 hits, but in the bottom of the inning Churchill scored two of their own on 4 hits. Let’s play 9! In the top of the 9th Sheldon exploded for 6 runs on 5 hits to make the score 13-7. In the bottom of the 9th, Moran retired the first two hitters but then surrendered 3 straight extra base hits and two runs. Alex Besaw was then brought in to record the final out and he did when Anthony Krietz grounded out to second. Final: Sheldon 13- Churchill 9. Both these teams showed amazing resilience when it looked like the odds were extremely long. Early on it looked like a ho-hummer for the Lancers, but they failed to extend the lead and Sheldon snuck back into it. The teams combined for 32 hits together and seven extra base hits. Alex Besaw, who was the hard luck loser on Monday, continued his torrid pace with the stick going 3-4 with 5 RBI. Over the last 2 games, Besaw is 6-7 with a 2b, 3b, HR and three singles, with 7 RBI. As well, Corey Moran was 3-5 and scored 4 runs and Tyler Martell was 3-4 with 3 RBI. Greg Wirtala also had 3 hits for the Irish. For the Lancers, Justin Hoffman was 3-5 with a double, Adam Troutman was 2-5 with a double and triple and Andrew Schumacher was 2-4 with a triple. Drew Irsfled and Jerad Thompson also had 2 RBI for the Lancers.
Friday April 28th
The Irish bats are starting to warm up a little, but it was the Axeman who jumped out to an early lead while tallying 9 hits in the first three innings.
In the top of the first
South pushed across 2 runs on four hits. The Axeman added another in the 2nd
off Irish starter Corey Moran and it looked like the making of a tough day for
Sheldon. In the bottom of the 2nd however the bottom of the order
struck paydirt for the Irish as sophomore second baseman Peter Jaeger cracked
a bases loaded, bases clearing, 2 out double to the wall in left.
With the score now 3-3 the
two teams went back to work. In the top of the third SE strung 3 hits and an
error together to plate 4 more runs. With O’Brien looking pretty good and
Ward in the pen, it looked like long odds for Sheldon. However, after scoring
1 in the bottom of the 3rd to make the score 7-4, the Irish
exploded for 6 in the 4th to put themselves up 10-7. In the
inning, the Irish were led of with a 3b by Tyler Martell that glanced off
South centerfielder Rooke-Ley’s glove in deep right. Micah McJunkin then hit
a laser off South starter Dan O’Brien’s leg, scoring Martell. Alex Besaw then
hit a ground ball to the six hole that snuck by 3b Brown’s glove. Brandon
Hayes hit a high pop that landed for a double in front of South’s outfielders
who were playing very deep all day. Caleb Carter followed with a shot to the
right of SS Wilson-Trasiman who made a great play getting to the ball but
bobbled it and was too late to make the throw. Before you know it 6 runs had
scored. Ward came in and got the last out and finished the game holding
Sheldon scoreless.
Brandon Hayes, who came on
to relieve for Moran in the 4th worked out of a no out, bases
loaded jam in the 4th as well as a no out jam in the 6th.
When the game ended South lamented at so many plays that could have, maybe
even should have been made, as well as numerous scoring opportunities that
went unclaimed. Sheldon felt very fortunate to have the win. Ben Kiesse was
3-4 for South and Sam Holman was 2-4 with a double. For Sheldon, Tyler
Martell had 2 hits, Greg Wirtala had 2 hits, and Alex Besaw had 2 hits. Out
of the 18 starters in the game, 17 had a hit. The bats are starting to warm
up!
Wednesday April 26th
For the fourth time in 5 games Sheldon came back to win a 5-4 (all four games were 5-4) ballgame, and Irish ace Alex Besaw has been the winning pitcher in all 4. Pretty unreal.
Two of the best pitchers in
the league today (seems like you could say that every day) met and both (kinda)
lived up to expectations.
Sheldon got going in the 5th
off a Corey Moran single, followed by a Tyler Martell single, followed by a
Micah McJunkin RBI single. With the score now 4-1 and runners at the corners,
Alex Besaw took a first pitch fastball deep to the wall in left. Martell
scored and as McJunkin wheeled home the throw from the cut sailed well above
the catcher, all the while a hustling Besaw never slowed and beat the play at
home. In the blink of an eye, the game was tied and momentum was sitting in
the Irish dugout. However, Greene settled down and put his team in position
to take the game in the bottom of the 7th. Nate Hiebert led off
with a single and was bunted over by Mark Elkins. Brent Trask was then
intentionally walked, and when Besaw plugged Kyle Dziedzek in the back it left
the bases loaded with one out. Lebanon- No extra basehits, RBI- Dziedzik, only one I can recall Sheldon- 2b- Hayes (2), Martell 3b- Besaw RBI- Besaw 2, Wirtala, McJunkin Win- Besaw- couple earned, 8 hits allowed, Ks ? (5-6) League record 5-1 Loss Greene- all earned I think, 11 hits, Ks ? (7-8)
Wednesday April 19th
Sheldon 5 Thurston 4 Irish pitcher Alex Besaw went 8 innings to win a pitching duel with Daniel Straily who went 7 2/3. Although Besaw recorded only 4 strikeouts he didn’t yield but one free pass and was able to wiggle out of a couple jams. Straily was extremely effective and had the Irish fighting off inside fastballs all day. However, the left side of the Colts infield was very suspect committing 5 errors by themselves that either directly or indirectly led to 4 runs. The Irish went up early 1-0 when Alex Besaw’s infield single drove in a run. The Colts bounced back off a solo bomb by Sophomore shortstop Darrell Hunter. The score was knotted at 1s till the top of the seventh when a bad hop single by Caleb Carter knocked in 2 runs. Up 3-1 the Irish felt they had it in the bag, but Thurston battled back with a couple doubles and a single to tie the game…and came within a step of beating out an infield single that would have won the game. In the top of the 8th, Brandon Hayes delivered a high fly ball to deep right (that probably should have been caught) that landed for a stand up triple scoring Micah McJunkin. One hitter later Carter knocked in Hayes with another single. In the bottom of the 8th the Colts came back strong again with a single and a double to make the score 5-4. After a couple of well hit balls landed in centerfielder Tyler Martell’s glove, the Irish felt very fortunate for the win and the Colts were thinking about what might have been. Don’t have a lot of extras but…
Schauerman(sp) had a 2b for
Thurston, as did Willis and Urness…may have been another?
Hunter 1 RBI
For Sheldon Triple by Hayes
Monday April 17th
Sheldon 5 Willamette 4 Both teams missed opportunities to stretch their leads in a back and forth contest between the Irish and the Wolverines. Alex Besaw singled in the winning run in the bottom of the seventh to redeem himself for relinquishing a 1 run lead in the top of the inning. The Irish struck first on a Corey Moran walk, a double by Tyler Martell, and a sac fly off the bat of Micah McJunkin. But with just one out and a runner at third, the Irish missed an opportunity to add on. Willamette evened the contest in the top of the 4th, when Sheldon starter Brandon Hayes proceeded to walk the 6, 7, and 8 hitters in succession forcing in a run. Corey Moran relieved Hayes and induced a ground ball to end the threat. The Wolverines would of actually had the lead, but in the 3rd a Wolverine runner missed touching the plate on a routine play and was out on appeal. The Irish bounced back to a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the 4th when Brandon Hayes and Caleb Carter stroked back to back doubles, yet once again runners were left stranded and nothing more materialized. In the top of the 5th, Willamette took a 3-2 lead on Michael Calef’s 2 run double, a play in which Irish Centerfielder Tyler Martell fell to the ground on his break for what was likely a routine fly ball. In the bottom of the 6th, the Irish knotted the score when Brandon Hayes smacked a ball deep over the right field fence. Greg Wirtala was then hit by a pitch and proceeded to steal 2nd. Wirtala advanced on a ground ball and scored when Tyler Manley knocked a hard shot towards the 6 hole. Wolverine shortstop Jerrad Hughes made a great attempt but couldn’t come up clean with the ball and his throw was late. Alex Besaw was brought in to shut the door, but James Horsely started off the inning with a jam-shot infield single, and then advanced on a pass ball. Travis Woodke hit the ball well to center, but a little too much topspin helped find the baseball in Martell’s glove. Cleanup hitter Chad Metzel did the job for the Wolverines however with a 2 strike single down the rightfield line. Once again, Wolverine baserunning errors stopped the inning short as pitch runner Kyle Hardwick was back picked off 1st, especially since Michael Calef then singled. Calef was thrown out trying to steal and the threat was ended. Willamette was out four times on the base paths during the game, three assists belonging to Irish catcher Tyler Manley. In the bottom of the 7th with the score knotted at 4, Tyler Martell led off with a 2b that realistically should have caught by the Wolverine rightfielder but was misjudged. McJunkin was then intentionally walked, which brought Besaw to the plate, where he promptly lined the game winning single down the leftfield line. Dahlgren takes the hard luck loss and Besaw gets the win. The Wolverines were led by James Horsley who was 3-3 on the day including a deep 2b to center field. Michael Calef was 3-4 with a 2b and 2RBi as well. The Irish were led by breakout games for Tyler Martell and Brandon Hayes. Martell was 3-4 with 2 2bs and scored the winning run, while Hayes, mired in a season long slump, busted out with a 2-3 performance including a 2b and a HR. With only 3 returning starters from last years squad the Willamette Wolverines have a very good ball club and a lot of youth on the mound. Sheldon looks as if the bats might be warming up, which would be a welcomed sight for a club struggling to hit the ball well. 2bs- W-Horsley, Calef S- Martell 2, Hayes, Carter HR- S- Hayes RBI- W- Calef 2, Metzel, Wallace S- McJunkin, Carter, Hayes, Manley, Besaw W- Besaw L-Dahlgren
Wednesday April 12th
Churchill 8 Sheldon 4 The anticipated pitchers dual kind of looked more like a hit and miss big inning affair as Churchill scored 5 in the second and 3 in the fourth and Sheldon scored all four in the in the fourth. Thompson was somewhat of a thermastat striking out 10 but giving up 10 hits. Churchill scored in the 2nd after a double by Franke an Irsfeld single, Straka wore one, Hoffman singled, and Troutman banged a triple followed by a passed ball. In the fourth Sheldon turned the leather on their gloves into boots and the Lancers took advantage for 3 more off of suspect defense. Sophomore Kaleb Carter pitched 3 1/3 hitless innings to keep the Irish within striking distance after SHS scored on a Carter walk, Jaeger single, Konold "gork" and consecutive doubles by Manley and Moran. Sheldon had multiple opportunities but in the end Thompson, his big lead, and errorless defense were just to much for the lepercauns, who out hit the Lancers 10 -7, to overcome.
chs 8 7 0
shs 4 10 3 Besaw, Carter(4), Manley Thompson, Hoffman W Thompson, L Besaw RBIs Ch Irsfeld 1, Hoffman 1, Trautman 2 Sh Konold 1, Manley 1, Moran 2 Doubles Ch Franke, Sh Moran, Carter, Manley Triples Ch Trautman Tuesday make up game April 11 North Eugene 3 Sheldon 2 After playing 3 innings of 1-1 baseball on Monday before the rain came, the Irish and the Highlanders were at it again on Tuesday. The Irish stayed with Monday’s starter Corey Moran and NE countered with lefty Jon Keller after Shawn Peterson had pitched on Monday. The game remained tied at 0-0 till the 4th inning, when Andrew Stiltner’s double down the leftfield line scored Peterson. In the top of the 6th a tiring Moran walked Steven Humble and then delivered a belt high fastball to Peterson who deposited it beyond the left field fence to make the score 3-0. Meanwhile, Keller was firing on all cylinders and took a no-hitter into the 5th before a Corey Moran’s single broke it up. Keller held the Irish scoreless through 6, but the Irish weren’t quite ready to roll over. With two outs in the 7th, Corey Moran singled for the second time in the game. Tyler Martell followed with a single, Micah McJunkin was walked, and Alex Besaw had an infield single to put the winning run on first. A wild pitch brought the game to 3-2 with the tying run at 3rd and the winning run at 2nd. Keller would strike out Brandon Hayes, his 13th of the game, to put an end to the contest.
2b- Stiltner-N North- Stiltner 2-3, Peterson 2-3, Saboe 2-3 Sheldon- Moran 2-3
Friday April 7th
Sheldon 4 South Eugene 1 Alex Besaw took center stage again for the Irish, pitching a complete game hitter, and driving in the eventual winning run. A pitching duel was expected when Besaw and Michael Ward toed the mound for their respective teams, and more or less the form held. Sheldon scored in the second on a 2 out base hit by Adam Powell, and then scored twice in the fourth. Ward left the game in the 4th after giving up only 2 hits. Sheldon tacked on another run in the fifth on a sacrifice fly by Brandon Hayes. In the bottom of the 6th, South threatened but could only plate one run. Sophomore Even Brown crushed a two out double in the seventh, but that was it as Besaw got the last batter to ground out to 3rd. Sheldon finished with just three hits, South with four.
Thursday March 31st
McMinnville 6 Sheldon 4 Grizzles score four in bottom of first. Moran throws solid middle relief, but Irish only get two hits. McMinnville scored four in the first on a combination of hits, errors and walks. Irish hitless in the last 6 innings of play. McJunkin had the lone RBI and one of the hits, while Besaw had the other.
Wednesday March 29th
Sheldon 4 Ashland 0 Besaw goes all seven in four hit, eleven K, 1 walk performance. McJunkin two rbi's for Irish. Irish play Lancers today for tourney title. Both teams have five game win streaks going this year.
Tuesday March 28th
Sheldon 6 Roosevelt 5 Irish score 5 in top or 7th to win it. Moran came in to pitch the last 2 1/3 to get the win. Sheldon scores all 5 runs in the 7th on one hit, a leadoff 2b by sophomore Caleb Carter.
March 20th
Sheldon 4 South Salem 2
IThe Sheldon Irish ran their non-league record to 3-1 with a 4-2 victory over the Saxons of South Salem. The Irish tallied 3 in the first, and added another in the fourth.
FRIDAY March 17th
Sheldon 10 Marist 7 McJunkin hits two run dinger on St. Patty's Day for Irish. Sheldon uses four pitchers to down Marist
WEDNESDAY 15th
Sheldon 8 Sprague 5 Sheldon defeated the defending state champions behind the arm and bat of Corey Moran. Moran pitched a complete game, scattering 6 hits, striking out 2 and walking 0! At the plate, Moran was 3-4 with 3 doubles and 3 RBI. Brandon Hayes, Tyler Manley, and Alex Besaw all had doubles for Sheldon. Micah McJunkin and Tyler Manley also had RBIs for the Irish, and Tyler Martell added 2 hits... Coach Starr MONDAY 13th
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