Chino crushes Kalispell
WHITEFISH - Kalispell Lakers skipper Ryan Malmin gave the team and its fans something to smile about in the final inning of a painful day.
Down 15-1 to Chino with two outs in the bottom of the fourth, Malmin walked out to the mound, turned to his catcher, Zach Brosten, and asked the Laker veteran if he'd like his first chance at pitching in a game. A second later, Brosten hustled to the dugout and peeled off his catcher's gear. At the same time, Mario Venturini, a pitcher for Kalispell, threw on backup gear and tried the view from behind the plate for once.
"Sometimes you get those kids that aren't pitchers and they always talk about wanting the opportunity," Malmin said. "Zach has gone through a rough time here in the last week or so and I thought it would be fun to not only give him an opportunity there but Mario's begged to do some catching. So it was kind of an opportunity for those guys to get in and it was kind of fun."
Brosten and Venturini got the job done and the Lakers loosened up after that but still lost handily, 16-4 to Chino in five innings at the 26th annual Sapa-Johnsrud Memorial Tournament on Wednesday.
In a meeting with one of the best Legion A teams in Southern California, Kalispell handed out 12 walks, eight in the first two innings, and Chino cashed in. The Red scored three in the first, seven in the second and five in the third to take a demoralizing lead.
"It was a painful day. We got off to a rough start," Malmin said.
"They gave us some walks early on and then we cashed in with some good hits," Chino head coach Charlie Reynoso said.
Chino, which won the California state championship in 2004, '05 and '06, is back playing at Sapa-Johnsrud for the sixth time after missing last year's tournament. The team is on the final
leg of a stretch of 19 games in 18 days, with successful stops in Billings, Libby and Spokane.
"We're doing well and the guys aren't tired, they're excited," Reynoso said. "They haven't said one word about calling home to mom or wanting to go home."
As for the Lakers, they looked ready to be home. Until the final inning, Kalispell had only four hits. In the top of the fifth, they managed to string together three straight hits and a 3-run homer by Michael O'Connell. O'Connell finished the day 3 for 3, Dean Stimpson went 2 for 3 and Marshall Boyland had the only other RBI for Kalispell (27-17 overall).
The Lakers continue tournament play today against Apple Valley at 5 p.m. in front of the new grandstand at Memorial Field.
CORRECTION: Kyle Knox went 1 for 4 with an RBI for the Glacier Twins in their game against Kalispell on Tuesday night.
Kalispell 001 03 - 4 7 1
Chino, Calif. 375 1x - 16 11 1
Shane Johnson, Parker Motley (2), Cody Dopps (3), Zach Brosten (4) and Brosten and Mario Venturini (4). Allende Esquire, Brett Early (4) and Christian Kelley. W - Esquire (3 strikeouts, 1 walk); L - Johnson.
KALISPELL - Dean Stimpson 2-3, Marshall Boyland 1-2, Michael O'Connell 3-3, Joe Pistorese 0-2, Motley 0-1, Brosten 0-2, Dillon Matteson 0-2, Greg Seaman 0-1, Dominic Eickert 0-2, Dopps 1-2.
HR - O'Connell; RBI - O'Connell (3), Boyland.
CHINO - Jeff Miller 0-2, Rob Wiley 0-2, Alex Mancillas 1-2, Mark McMahon 0-1, Steven Collins 1-2, Kevin Lara 3-4, Michael Johnson 2-2, Jerry Ramirez 1-1, Kelley 2-3, Aaron Reynoso 0-3, Jonny Reynoso 1-1.
2B - Johnson; HR - Lara, Collins; RBI - Collins (3), Kelley (2), J. Reynoso, A. Reynoso, Johnson (2), Lara (2), Mancillas.
26th annual Sapa-Johnsrud Tournament
Memorial Park
Wednesday's Scores
Apple Valley 5, Pullman 3
Gonzaga Prep 11, Lethbridge 9
Chino Reds 16, Kalispell Lakers 4
Thursday
11 a.m. - Pullman vs. Lethbridge; 2 p.m. - Gonzaga Prep vs. Chino; 5 p.m. - Kalispell vs. Apple Valley; 8 p.m. - Glacier vs. Chino.
Friday
11 a.m. - Gonzaga Prep vs. Pullman; 2 p.m. - Kalispell vs. Lethbridge; 5 p.m - Glacier vs. Apple Valley; 8 p.m. - Coach-Pitch All-Star Game