Rangers make it 9 out of last 11

The Daily Inter Lake

EUREKA - The Rangers are in a groove, and it's a good one.

Josh Soderling struck out 11 batters, Ryan Holder followed the next game with a one-hitter and the first-place Kootenai Valley Rangers swept an American Legion doubleheader against the Kalispell Lakers A on Saturday.

The Rangers won 6-3 and 10-0, and hiked their record to 23-9 and 9-1. The young squad, with five 15-year-olds playing up from Babe Ruth, has won nine of the last 11 games with roughly a month left on the season.

"The kids are real relaxed and playing well," KVR assistant coach Brent Holder said. "They've had good success this year and they're getting in a good groove."

In the opener, Soderling survived a last inning rally by Kalispell and earned the complete game victory with no walks and double-digit strikeouts.

The Rangers' offense helped him out early, scoring four runs in the first two innings. In the fifth frame, Bryton Guckenberg added a two-run homer that made it 6-1.

In the second game, the Kootenai Valley pitching did it again, this time behind the arm of Holder, who had a no-hitter through five until Kalispell's Keifer Wills dropped in a single in the sixth.

The Rangers went on to win via the 10-run rule. Holder struck out eight and improved to 10-1 on the season with a 1.90 ERA. As a team, the Rangers have a combined earned run average of 2.99.

"We have some great leaders in this group," coach Holder said. "It just seems like everything is coming together for the boys right now."

Guckenberg had four hits on the day and three RBIs, Holder had two doubles and three RBIs and Chad Price added two RBIs for the Rangers.

Kalispell 000 100 2 - 3 6 1

Kootenai Valley 310 020 x - 6 7 1

Chris Calles, Britt Block (6) and Jimmy Jumper. Josh Soderling and Klinton Chupp.

WP - Soderling, 6-4 (11 strikeouts, no walks thru six innings); LP - Calles.

KALISPELL - Keifer Wills 0-4, Jumper 1-4, Brady Mott 1-4, Marshall Boyland 2-3, Shawn Moody 1-3, Alex Stanley 1-3, Scoob Decker 1-3, Parker Motley 1-3, Tyler Schwenke 0-2, Dominic Eickert 0-1, Andrew Gilpin 0-1.

2B - Boyland; RBI - Boyland 2, Stanley.

KOOTENAI VALLEY - Chad Price 1-2, Kade Davis 1-2, Bryton Guckenberg 2-3, Ryan Holder 1-3, Alex Lesowski 1-3, Chupp 0-3, Colin Gillard 0-3, Lance McMarrell 0-3, Jacob Grove 1-1.

HR - Guckenberg; 2B - Holder; RBI - Guckenberg 2, Holder, Grove.

Kalispell 000 000 - 0 1 2

Kootenai Valley 401 032 - 10 10 0

Shane Johnson, Scoob Decker (6) and Jumper. Ryan Holder and Kade Davis. WP - Holder, 10-1 (eight strikeouts, one walk thru six innings); LP - Johnson.

KALISPELL - Keifer Wills 1-3, Dominic Eickert 0-3, Brady Mott 0-2, Shawn Moody 0-2, Alex Stanley 0-2, Britt Block 0-2, Parker Motley 0-2, Chris Calles 0-2, Jumper 0-2.

KOOTENAI VALLEY - Chad Price 1-4, Davis 1-2, Bryton Guckenberg 2-3, Holder 2-4, Alex Lesowski 0-2, Klinton Chupp 2-2, Jacob Grove 1-1, Caleb Curtiss 0-0, Hunter Price 0-2, Taylor Brown 1-1, Lance McMarrell 0-1.

2B - Holder; RBI - Holder 2, Price 2, Davis, Guckenberg, Chupp, Grove.

Mission Valley 3-1 at Wooden Bat Tourney

DEER LODGE - The Mission Valley Mariners improved to 3-1 at the Deer Lodge Wooden Bat Tournament with a 14-0 win over the Salmon, Idaho, American Legion baseball club on Saturday.

On Friday, the Mariners topped Anaconda 10-0 in five innings. At the first day of the tournament on Thursday, beat Dillon 8-3 and dropped one to the Deer Lodge club 11-9.

Salmon 000 00 - 0 1 2

M. Valley 1(11)2 0x - 14 11 1

Steven Huseth, Caleb Walker, Michael Lane and Lane, Brad Stokes. Derrick Rothe and Xavier Morigeau. W - Rothe. L - Huseth.

SALMON - Jordan Drnjevic 0-2, Caleb Walker 1-2, Doss Barbarick 0-2, Colton Ellis 0-2, Huseth 0-2, Lane 0-1, Austin Dupuis 0-1, Stokes 0-2, Brady Hill 0-2.

MISSION VALLEY - Kaileb Gillingham 0-1, Jesse Alfiero 1-3, Tyler Linse 1-2, Spencer Trawick 0-1, Derrick Rathe 1-2, Kyle Bagnell 1-3, Willy Wallace 2-2, Chris Alfiero 0-0, Cory Hardy 2-2, Josh Rustad 0-2, Xavier Morigeau 1-1, Justin Evans 2-2.

HR - Bagnell. RBI - J. Alfiero, Wallace, Bagnell 2, Hardy 2.

Lakers AA split with

Med Hat

MEDICINE HAT, Alberta - The Kalispell Lakers AA club split a road doubleheader against conference foe Medicine Hat on Thursday. Kalispell won the opener 12-8 but fell 14-4 in the nightcap.

With roughly a month left in the season, the Lakers (24-11, 10-4) sit in second place in Western AA. They host a twinbill against the Great Falls Electrics (3-10) on Tuesday.

Kalispell 221 033 1 - 12 10 4

Medicine Hat 004 011 2 - 8 7 7

Joe Pistorese, Ben Sansaver (6) and Zach Brosten. Joel Lutz and Connor Bradshaw. WP - Pistorese, 7-1 (nine strikeouts, five walks thru 5 2/3); LP - Lutz; S - Sansaver.

KALISPELL - Dean Stimpson 0-3, Sansaver 2-4, Mike O'Connell 2-4, Pat Hergesheimer 1-3, Brosten 3-5, Mat O'Brian 0-2, Toby Liechti 1-2, Pistorese 1-4, Bryant Eickert 0-0, Greg Seaman 0-4.

RBI - Brosten 3, Liechti 2, Pistorese, O'Connell, Sansaver, Hergesheimer.

MEDICINE HAT - Dustin Thompson 0-2, Reid Fischer 2-4, Lutz 1-2, Mitch Frey 0-3, Kyle Fruson 0-2, Connor Bradshaw 0-1, Tyson Ford 1-4, Austin Fruson 1-2, Riley Arnott 0-2, Levi Westerlund 1-2, Brant Hittel 1-4.

HR - Lutz; RBI - Lutz 4, Ford 2.

Kalispell 100 300 x - 4 4 4

Medicine Hat 010 436 x - 14 15 6

Mario Venturini, Ben Sansaver (5) and Zach Brosten. Mitch Frey, Levi Westerlund (4), Reid Fischer and Austin Fruson. WP - Westerlund; LP - Venturini, 7-2.

KALISPELL - Dean Stimpson 1-2, Sansaver 0-3, Mike O'Connell 0-2, Pat Hergesheimer 1-4, Brosten 1-3, Mat O'Brian 0-3, Toby Liechti 0-2, Joe Pistorese 0-1, Bryant Eickert 1-1, Blaine Matulevich 0-1, Chris Calles 0-0.

2B - Brosten, Stimpson; RBI - Sansaver, O'Connell, Hergesheimer, Liechti.

MEDICINE HAT - Reid Fischer 2-2, Riley Arnott 2-4, Joel Lutz 0-3, Frey 1-4, Westerlund 3-3, Fruson 3-4, Brant Hittel 2-3, Chad Hodges 1-2, Tanner Betcker 1-3.

2B - Hodges, Frey, Fischer, Arnott, Fruson; RBI - Hittel 3, Fruson 2, Westerlund 2, Hodges, Arnott, Fischer.