Fogel, PaddleHeads power past Riders twice
The Missoula PaddleHeads hit three home runs to power them to an opening road series win over the Range Riders 14-5 at Glacier Bank Park Friday night.
The PaddlesHeads’ Adam Fogel hit his Pioneer League-leading 34th home run of the season as the PaddleHeads scored 11 runs off the Range Riders bullpen.
Jerry Huntzinger homered for the Range Riders (40-42 overall, 11-23 in the second half) for the second time this season, a solo shot in the fourth inning.
Patrick Wicklander started the game for the Range Riders and earned a no decision after pitching five innings, striking out eight.
The Range Riders took a 4-3 lead in the sixth inning when JD McLaughlin singled home Brady Held.
The lead didn’t last long.
The PaddleHeads scored seven runs in the seventh inning, four of them off Luke Cooper who was charged with the loss after giving up four earned runs without recording an out.
Missoula 000 300 740 — 14 12 0
Glacier 000 112 100 — 5 9 2
Dawson Day (5), Albert Cuello-Batista, Noah McBride (6), Arman Sabouri (7), Andrew Garcia (9) and Taylor Smith. Patrick Wicklander (5), Nick Zenga, Luke Coooper (6), Ricky Tibbet, Jack Lynch (8) and Freddy Guilamo.
MISSOULA PADDLEHEADS — Kamron Willman 2-4, Patrick Chung 1-3, Roberto Pena 1-5, Adam Fogel 2-5, Alec Sanchez 2-4, Taylor Smith 0-4, Josh Elvir 2-5, Hayden Travinski 1-5, Cameron Thompson 1-5.
GLACIER RANGE RIDERS — Andy Atwood 1-5, Ryan McCarthy 2-5, Gabe Howel 1-3, Christian Kirtley 0-3, Kingston Liniak 1-4, Jerry Huntzinger 1-3, Drew Sims 2-4, Freddy Guilamo 0-3, JD McLaughlin 1-4.
2B — Elvir, Thompson, Willman, Liniak, McCarthy, Sims. 3B — Atwood. HR — Elvir (6), Fogel (34), Sanchez (1). RBI — Chung, Travinski, Pena 2, Fogel 3, Elvir 3, Sanchez 4. Howell, Huntzinger, Kirtley, McLaughlin, Sims.
Thursday: PaddleHeads 13, Range Riders 6
MISSOULA — Adam Fogel blasted his Pioneer League record 33rd home run of the 2024 season in the PaddleHeads’ Thursday win at Ogren-Allegiance Field.
Fogel bested the modern Pioneer League record set in 2022 by former PaddleHeads player Jayson Newman-Dodd. Both records were set after the Pioneer League switched to a 96-game schedule; from 1963-2020 the league played 76 games.
Mike Rosario and Taylor Smith added longballs as Missoula scored in six of eight innings.
Trailing 8-3, Kingston Liniak hit a two-run double — one of his three doubles of the evening — to right field for the Range Riders. He drove in three runs.
Next inning, Ryan McCarthy sent one over the right field wall to cut the gap to 9-6, but Glacier couldn’t get any closer.
Jared Engman started for the Range Riders, allowing three runs on five hits. He fanned one in three innings.
Missoula and Glacier continue their series Saturday in Kalispell. The game was still ongoing at press time.
Glacier 110 012 010 - 6 13 0
Missoula 201 230 14x - 13 13 0
Jared Engman, Jack Lynch (4), Brady Held (5), Justin Coleman (6), Cameron Cowan (8) and Freddy Guilamo. Arman Sabouri, Nick Smith (2), Jestin Jones (5), Noah McBride (7), Mark Timmins (7), Christian Ciuffetelli (8), Ethan Swanson (9) and Taylor Smith.
GLACIER RANGE RIDERS — Gabe Howell 1-4, Ryan McCarthy 2-6, Kingston Liniak 4-5, Ty Penner 1-5, Christian Kirtley 1-4, Andy Atwood 1-4, Ben Fitzgerald 0-3, Freddy Guilamo 2-4, JD McLaughlin 1-4.
MISSOULA PADDLEHEADS — Patrick Chung 1-4, Robert Dudzinski 0-0, Mike Rosario 2-5, Adam Fogel 2-5, Adam Fogel 2-4, Cameron Thompson 1-4, Alec Sanchez 2-5, Taylor Smith 1-4, Roberto Pena 1-3, Carlos Perez 1-4, Kamron Willman 2-2.
2B — Liniak 3, Penner, Kirtley, Willman. HR — McCarthy (6), Rosario (11), Fogel (33), Smith (6). RBIs — Liniak 3, Atwood, McCarthy. Rosario 5, Fogel 3, Smith 2, Pena 2.