PIRATES 10

Black Bears 5

LONGVIEW — Take a moment and consider.

In 2009 the Moses Lake Pirates won a total of 10 games in a 48-game season and finished last in the West Coast League (WCL).

They didn’t have a winning road trip, never won more than two games in-a-row, and were out of playoff contention four weeks into the season.

Last night the Pirates proved that last season is not only in the past it is, in essence, dead and buried.

With their 10-5 win against the Cowlitz Black Bears, the Pirates improved to 12-12 in WCL play, 13-14 overall, and captured their fourth straight win in sweeping the three-game set in Longview.

On top of that, they finished their six-game road trip with a 5-1 record to set up next week’s three game series in Wenatchee against the defending WCL champion Apple Sox, who have seen their lead in the East Division shrink to one-and-a-half games.

In other words...the Pirates of 2010 are newer, steadier, and simply better.

Last night, Moses Lake broke out the bats early — finishing with 17 hits total — with a three-run top of the first inning.

Austin Shackelford (University of Utah) led off the game with a double, Duncan Blades (Salt Lake CC) singled, Nick Frederick (Pomona College) singled to bring Shackelford home for a 1-0 lead.

Michael Bush (Lewis and Clark College) then doubled to bring around Blades and Frederick to finish the early scoring.

Cowlitz (5-14) nipped away with a run in each of the bottom of the first and second innings to cut the deficit to 3-2.

Then Moses Lake really got serious.

Two more runs came home in their half of the third as Blades hit a home run, the team’s second off the season after Frederick’s blast on Tuesday to put Moses Lake up 4-2.

Frederick, Nate Roberts (Seattle University), Tylor Pavel (Wenatchee Valley College), and Josh Rapacz (George Fox University) all hit singles over a five-batter stretch to lead to another run and a 5-2 edge.

The Black Bears pulled starter Kirk Lind but things didn’t get any better as Moses Lake pounded out four runs in the fourth inning.

Andrew Rodriguez (San Jose State University) walked and Shackelford got on base via a Cowlitz error to get the rally started.

Frederick got on one-out later after being hit by a pitch. Bush then advanced to first due to a Cowlitz error as Shackelford and Rodriguez scored to make the score 7-2.

Roberts singled home Frederick and Pavel’s one-bagger knocked in Bush and the rout was on as Moses Lake led 9-2.

Cowlitz nipped away at Pirates starter Jordan Whitman (Cal Poly Pomona) cutting the deficit to 9-3 but Moses Lake scored once more in the top of the sixth inning after Bush singled with one out and came home two batters later as Pavel doubled him in.

Whitman finished up going seven innings while allowing eight hits and striking out three to earn the win.

The Pirates will take tonight off before starting a second non-league series with WCL travelling squad, the Portland Bucks, tomorrow night at Larson Field with a scheduled 7:35 p.m. first pitch.