The Mountaineers tried to rally in the bottom half of the seventh inning down 5-2 to the North Idaho Lakers 16U. The Mountaineers could only muster two runs in the bottom half of the final inning, which gave the North Idaho Lakers 16U the 5-4 victory.

“You have to look at the box score to really see how tight this game was,” Peak Sand & Gravel North Idaho Lakers 16U coach Ken Oler said. “The guys did another great job keeping their composure throughout some tough innings and situations.”

The Lakers 16U took their first lead of the ball game off of a double in the second inning. The Mountaineers 16U were quick to even things up in the bottom of the third at two runs apiece.

North Idaho Lakers 16U pulled away for good with three runs scored in the sixth inning; which was highlighted by a Mason Little double on a 2-1 count that scored a run.

The Lakers notched three hits during the sixth inning. Sage Medeiros and Cole Sanroman both got extra base hits, notching doubles. Dallen Willams also got on base with a single.

Chase Sanroman earned the victory on the hill for the North Idaho Lakers 16U. The righthander allowed two runs off of six hits over three and two-thirds innings. He struck out five batters. Williams came in relief of Sanroman. He threw three innings for the Lakers to close out the game.

Allaway took the loss for Northern Lakes Mountaineers 16U. The righty allowed five hits and two runs over five and a third innings, striking out five.

The Lakers 16U collected ten hits. Mason Little, Soren Caprio, and Medeiros all notched two hits for the Lakers 16U.

Northern Lakes Mountaineers racked up eight hits in the game. Ellwood and Cooksey each had multiple hits for Northern Lakes Mountaineers 16U.

Both teams also played cleanly for the most part, with the Lakers ending the game with only a single error and the Mountaineers racking up two.

Following the win over the Mountaineers, the Lakers jumped out to 3-1 to begin their season.

“They win games not just because of individual talent,” Oler said. “They’re winning because they are learning quickly that collectively they are a very strong team and that no one person has to carry the weight of a game on their shoulders.”

This fast start is good for the kids, but also the coaches according to Oler.

“As players develop trust with each other, they begin to relax,” Oler said. “When you are relaxed you play better. The other coaches and I tip our hats to these guys for their wins as a team.”

NI LAKERS 110 003 0 — 5 10 1

NRTH Mountaineers 101 000 2 — 4 8 2