Riders hit 4 HRs, including slam, in Friday win

by Daily Inter Lake
| July 12, 2024 10:56 PM

BOISE, Idaho — The Glacier Range Riders slugged four home runs Friday — including a grand slam by No. 9 hitter Ajay Sczepkowski — and beat Boise 10-6, staying in front of the race for a first-half playoff berth for the Pioneer League.

Sczepkowski’s blast, his fourth, erased a 3-1 deficit in the second inning and opened the flood gates for the Range Riders, now 28-18. Their lead grew to 6-3 on Jerome Huntsinger’s RBI triple in the third inning, then to 10-5 when Ty Penner, Christian Kirtley and Chad Castillo hit solo homers back-to-back-to-back in the seventh inning.

Castillo had three hits and scored twice; Kirtley, who sits second in the PL with 16 home runs (Missoula’s Adam Fogel has 20), also scored twice.

Luke Cooper got the win for two innings of relief of starter Nick Zegna, who was knocked from the game with two out in the fifth. Seth Pinkerton got the final seven outs for the Range Riders, two by strikeout.

The win puts Glacier’s magic number at two: Northern Colorado (27-19) won 17-9 Friday and remains one game behind; both teams lost Thursday, with Glacier getting shut out 3-0.

Any combination of two Range Riders wins or Owlz losses gives the Riders the PL's second playoff berth for this half-season Pioneer League playoff berth. The Missoula PaddleHeads (35-10) clinched the first-half title last week.

The Range Riders play two more games in Boise to end the first half.

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Nick Zegna, Luke Cooper (5), Seth Pinkerton (7) and Jerome Huntsinger. Luke Schafer, Blake McPadden (7), Evan Kowalski (7), Emilio Alfonszo (8), Andrew Edwards (9).

GLACIER RANGE RIDERS — Gabe Howell 0-4, Ty Penner 1-5, Christian Kirtley 2-5, Chad Castilllo 3-5, Jerome Huntzinger 2-4, Andy Atwood 2-4, JD McLaughlin 1-3, Nick Block 0-2, Ajay Sczepkowski 1-4.

BOISE HAWKS — Kole Kaler 3-5, Michael O’Hara 2-5, Micah Yonamine 3-5, DJ Poteet 0-0, Troy Viola 1-5, Noah Marcelo 1-3, Joseph Kalafut 0-3, Patrick Merino 0-1, Nicholas Klemp 0-2, Carter Sanford 0-1, Tyler Jorgensen 2-4, Tyner Hughes 1-4.

2B — Kirtley, O’Hara, Jorgensen. 3B — Huntzinger, Kaler. HR — Penner (5), Kirtley (16), Castillo (9), Sczepkowski (4), Yonamine (11). RBIs — Sczepkowski 4, Penner, Kirtley, Castillo, Hungzinger, Block, Yonamine 2, Marcelo 2, O’Hara, Viola.

Thursday

Hawks 3, Range Riders 0

Boise pitcher Isaac Mendez combined with two relievers on a five-hitter; Mendez went five innings, allowing three hits and two walks. He fanned five.

Cameron Dayton pitched a perfect sixth and Reed Garland came on for a three-inning save.

JD McLaughlin two of Glacier’s hits, and Sczepkowski doubled with two out in the ninth inning to give his team some life, before Freddy Guilamo fanned to end it.

Boise (24-22) broke a 0-0 tie with Noah Marcelo’s RBI single in the sixth inning; two batters later Tyler Jorgensen drove in two more with another base hit off reliever Montana Quigley.

One Range Rider highlight: Jerome Huntsinger, who caught Friday’s game, threw a perfect seventh inning of relief, striking out the side.

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Kaleb Sophy, Montana Quigley (6), Huntsinger (7), Carter Raffield (8) and Freddy Guilamo. Isaac Mendez, Cameron Dayton (6), Reed Garland (7) and Nicholas Klemp.

RANGE RIDERS — Howell 1-4, Atwood 0-4, Penner 0-2, Kirtley 1-4, Castillo 0-4, McLaughlin 2-3, Sczepkowski 1-4, Guilamo 0-3, Brady Held 0-0, Gavin Tonkel 0-2, Nick Block 0-1.

HAWKS — Kaler 0-3, Yonamine 1-4, Troy Viola 1-3, Merino 1-3, Marcelo 2-4, Klemp 0-3, Jorgensen 1-3, Hughes 1-3, O’Hara 0-3.

2B — Sczepkowski. RBIs — Jorgensen 2, Marcelo.