Riders win Game 1

Glacier's Gabe Howell (10) scores from first base on a double by Chad Castillo (28) in the sixth inning against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Range Riders starting pitcher Patrick Wicklander (24) delivers in the third inning against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Glacier's Chad Castillo (28) drives in Gabe Howell from first base with a double in the sixth inning against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Range Riders reliever Noah Owen (32) celebrates with Freddy Guilamo (19) and Ty Penner (3) after getting the six-out save against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Glacier shortstop Andy Atwood (21) makes a throw to first for an out against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Range Riders centerfielder Kingston Liniak (20) makes a sliding catch on a line drive against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Glacier's Kingston Liniak (20) connects on a double in the fifth inning against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Glacier's Christian Kirtley (1) drives in Ryan McCarthy in the first inning against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Glacier's Ryan McCarthy (5) scores a run on a single by Christian Kirtley in the first inning against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Range Riders third baseman Christian Kirtley (1) makes a throw to first baseman Ben Fitzgerald (8) against Missoula at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

Missoula shortstop Kamron Gillman (2) turns a double play in the second inning against Glacier at Glacier Bank Park on Tuesday, Sept. 10. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
Casey Kreider

by JOSH AMICK
Reporter | September 11, 2024 12:00 AM

Patrick Wicklander dominated the top-ranked Missoula PaddleHeads offense with seven strong innings and 11 strikeouts, as the Range Riders won their first playoff game in their three-year history, 4-2 at Glacier Bank Park Tuesday.

After the PaddleHeads were retired in order in the top of the first, Ryan McCarthy led off the Range Riders' half of the inning with a single down the right field line and would later steal second.

With two outs, Christian Kirtley singled home McCarthy to give them a 1-0 lead.

The Range Riders would score again in the second inning when Freddy Guilamo was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and no outs to force in a run. McCarthy struck out andf Gabe Howell hit into a double play to end the inning.

The score would remain 2-0 until the fifth inning when Wicklander made his only mistake of the night.

After retiring the first two batters, he walked Carlos Perez and gave up a two-run home run to Patrick Chung to tie the game.

In the fifth inning the Range Riders regained the lead after Andy Atwood’s RBI fielder’s choice. In the sixth inning, Chad Castillo hit his second double of the night, scoring Howell from first base to take a 4-2 lead.

Castillo finished the game 2-for-4 with two doubles after tying the Pioneer League single season record for doubles in the season with 37.

“You got to keep your approach simple,” Castillo said. “We have played 96 games, and you can’t make this game anymore than it is, you have to keep it baseball.”

With Wicklander at 92 pitches through six, manager Paul Fletcher decided to stick with Wicklander for the seventh.

“There wasn’t much of a conversation after the sixth inning,” said Wicklander. “I said you are not taking me out.”

He retired the side in order, picking up his 10th and 11th strikeout of the night before turning the game over to Noah Owen for the eight.

Kingston Liniak went 2-for-4 with two doubles and a run scored. After leading the team in home runs last season, he was eager to rejoin the team and get his first taste of postseason basebal.

“The atmosphere was incredible, I was screaming in the outfield with every single strike that we threw,” Liniak said.

“The fact that we put together this effort when it counted just makes me so happy, it just tells us that we can do it again and again.”

Owen pitched a scoreless eighth and ninth inning to earn the save and now the Range Riders are one win away from advancing to the Pioneer League Championship Series.

They will travel to Missoula on Thursday for the possible final game of the series and if they win, they will host the winner of the Oakland/Yolo series on Sunday at Glacier Bank Park.

The fact that we got Villa, who’s been here before is pretty impressive,” Liniak said. “We scored four runs off 11 hits, and we know we are capable of scoring 15, but I’m really happy and proud of the guys.”