“We won on a squeeze play for the last play of the game to walk off which is pretty phenomenal. Great for the kids and all the effort it takes to make it happen.”  

- Knights baseball coach Brandon Jenks 

ROYAL CITY – The Royal City Knights baseball team played a doubleheader against Cashmere losing their first game 15-5 and winning their second 4-5. 

“From the first pitch, it didn’t go great in the beginning of the first one,” said Knights coach Brandon Jenks. “But we definitely tightened our belts on the defensive efficiency, made the plays we should make and hit the ball a little bit better as well.” 

In the first game, the Knights were able to score five runs on four hits in the bottom of the fourth inning. Bryan Larsen drew a walk, scoring a run, Jackson Larson singled scoring two and Israel Ramirez singled scoring another two. 

“No fun to lose like that, my kids are pretty disappointed in their performance, but you know that’s life,” said Jenks. “The part that I was excited about is the next game then you go back to work, and you get after it.” 

Going into the second game, the team was getting their minds in the right place to push themselves to win, making sure to check their emotions and play the best they can, said Jenks. 

“Baseball is a finicky game like that, it’s tough to measure exactly what changes from when you feel like you’re in it to when you feel like you’re having a bad day,” said Jenks. 

The second game had a slow start for the Knights with the team being down 4-0 at the bottom of the fourth. A couple of timely hits and a strong offensive front brought them back for a 4-5 victory, said Jenks. 

The Knights scored two in the bottom of the fourth and were able to tie the game 4-4 in the fifth with a double by Ernie Weeks. Logan Piper was able to make a hit in the bottom of the second, which secured one final run, giving the Knights the victory. 

“I’ve got all kids on deck doing their part,” said Jenks. “I preach a lot about little things matter so much, you never know when that happens and in the second game, we did a good job of taking advantage when they made a mistake, or we did something really well.” 

Bronson Scroggins led the Knights with two runs batted in with Piper, Scroggins and Weeks each collecting one hit for the team.  

Jackson Larsen started on the mound for the Knights, giving up nine hits and four runs over five innings, striking out eight and walking three. Weeks pitched the final two innings, allowing one hit and zero runs, striking out two and walking one. 

“We won on a squeeze play for the last play of the game to walk off, which is pretty phenomenal,” said the coach. “Great for the kids and all the effort it takes to make it happen.” 

The Knights are looking to prepare for their next few games with a game against Chelan and a doubleheader against Desales after they take Spring Break. In preparation for the coming weeks, the team is looking to put a heavy focus on their pitching and defensive work while also trying to be more aggressive at bat, said Jenks. 

Jenks said that, above all, he is proud of the abilities that this team has shown so far and that the team will continue to strive to be the best they can be to reach the top of the league. 

“I tell them, ‘Baseball is one of those things for life you go from zero to hero in one swing, so keep trying even when it sucks,’” said Jenks. “Keep your head up and keep going forward and good things will happen.” 

The Knights' next game will be on the road Friday against Chelan at 3 p.m. 

Knights Roster 

Name, Jersey 

Ben Jenks, 10 

Bryan Larsen, 24 

Brycen Fitzhugh, 2 

Charlie Guerrero, 21 

Damien Ceja, 20 

Ellie Vivar, 14 

Ernie Weeks, 15 

Fischer Livingston, 1 

Gabino Mendoza, 3 

Bronson Scroggins, 5 

Israel Ramirez, 9 

Jack Gilbert, 17 

Jackson Larsen, 8 

Karson Thompson, 4 

Krew Jenks, 23 

Logan Piper, 6 

Nolan Wright, 22 

Rolando Cedillo, 25 

Tyce Christensen, 19 

    Knights’ Bronson Scroggins prepares to make a catch. Scroggins also led the team with two runs batted in and went one for two in the second game.
  

    Bryan Larsen helped keep the Knights in the first game by drawing a walk and scoring one run.
  

    Ben Jenks has shown great ability base running and creatively finding ways to steal bases, Royal coaches said.
  

    Israel Ramirez played an important role in both games scoring two runs in the first game, stealing two bases and playing a good game in the outfield.