Mission Valley Legion opens season with strong showings

The Mission Valley Mariners kicked off their American Legion baseball season with six games in six days, rebounding from an opening loss to secure four wins and show early promise heading into the summer schedule.

The Mariners opened the year on May 27 with a tough 13-1 loss to the Kalispell Lakers. Defensive miscues plagued Mission Valley, which committed seven errors despite a solid start from Cole Wadsworth on the mound. Wadsworth went five innings, allowing four earned runs and striking out three. At the plate, he led the offense with a 2-for-4 effort, including a double. Wyatt Wadsworth added an RBI single.

Mission Valley bounced back quickly the next day, defeating the Kalispell Lakes squad 9-6 in a back-and-forth contest. The Mariners piled up 15 hits, led by Cole Wadsworth’s 3-for-6 performance with two RBIs and a triple. Cody Haggard went 3-for-4, while Holden Emerson and Wyatt Wadsworth each added two hits and a double. On the mound, Haggard tossed six strong innings, giving up just two earned runs and striking out five. Wyatt Wadsworth closed out the game with three innings of relief.

On Saturday, the Mariners maintained their momentum with a 9-3 win over Missoula. Cole Wadsworth was again at the center of the offense, going 4-for-5 with a double. Wyatt Wadsworth added two RBIs, and Aiden Gfroerer drove in another with a 2-for-4 outing. Mission Valley used three pitchers effectively, with Cash Atkinson handling the first three innings and Gfroerer and Aiden Courville finishing off the final four.

In the nightcap, Mission Valley defeated Missoula 16-4 with Holden Emerson slamming a home run and driving in three runs. Cole Wadsworth went 3-for-5 with two RBI, while Cody Haggard had two hits, a double and two RBI. Aiden Gfroerer also had two hits. Justin Brown started the game on the mound, striking out three and allowing four hits and four runs. Clay Wadsworth closed out the games with two innings of no runs. 

Sunday’s first game against Cranbrook saw Mission Valley edge out a 4-3 win thanks to timely hitting and another strong start from Cole Wadsworth. The right-hander struck out eight over 5.1 shutout innings, scattering three hits. Wyatt Wadsworth went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and a double and triple, while Landon Pablo drove in the go-ahead run in the eighth.

In the second game of the doubleheader, Mission Valley fell 11-4 to Cranbrook. Despite an early lead and a home run from Landon Shoemake, the Mariners couldn’t contain Cranbrook’s offense. Shoemake finished 3-for-4 with three RBIs and a double to go with his homer. Pitching struggles in the early innings put Mission Valley in a deficit it couldn’t overcome.

Tuesday, May 27

KALISPELL LAKERS 13, MISSION VALLEY 1

Kalispell - 0134013 - 13 - 8 - 2

MisValley - 0010000 - 1 - 4 - 7

MISSION VALLEY HITTING: Cole Wadsworth 2-4, Wyatt Wadsworth 1-3, Aiden Gfroerer 1-2; RBI: Wyatt Wadsworth; 2B: Cole Wadsworth

MISSION VALLEY PITCHING: Cole Wadsworth (5IP, 4H, 9R, 4ER, 3BB, 3SO); Landon Pablo (2IP, 4H, 4R, 1ER, 2BB)

Wednesday, May 28

MISSION VALLEY 9, KALISPELL LAKES 6

MisValley - 031001112 - 9 - 15 - 0

Kalispell - 201000030 - 6 - 9 - 5

MISSION VALLEY HITTING: Cole Wadsworth 3-6, Landon Shoemake 2-6, Cody Haggard 3-4, Wyatt Wadsworth 2-5, Holden Emerson 2-5, Aiden Gfroerer 1-4, Brayson DuMont 1-5, Noah Agliano 1-2; RBI: Cole Wadsworth 2, Haggard, Emerson, Pablo; 2B: Holden Emerson, Wyatt Wadsworth, Cole Wadsworth; 3B: Cole Wadsworth, Landon Shoemake

MISSION VALLEY PITCHING: Cody Haggard (6IP, 6H, 3R, 2ER, 1BB, 5SO); Wyatt Wadsworth (3IP, 3H, 3R, 3ER, 1BB, 1SO)

Saturday, May 31

MISSION VALLEY 9, MISSOULA 3

MisVall - 3020121 - 9 - 11 - 2

Missoula - 1010100 - 3 - 5 - 3

MISSION VALLEY HITTING: Cole Wadsworth 4-5, Wyatt Wadsworth 2-4, Cody Haggard 1-4, Aiden Gfroerer 2-4, Brayson DuMont 1-3, Paxson DuMont 1-3; RBI: Wyatt Wadsworth 2, Haggard, Gfroerer, Brayson DuMont, Paxson DuMont, Aiden Courville; 2B: Aiden Gfroerer, Wyatt Wadsworth; 2B: Cole Wadsworth

MISSION VALLEY PITCHING: Cash Atkinson (3IP, 4H, 2R, 2ER, 0BB, 3SO); Aiden Gfroerer (3IP, 1H, 1R, 0ER, 4BB, 0SO); Aiden Courville (1IP, 0H, 0R, 0ER, 1BB)

MISSION VALLEY 16, MISSOULA 4

MissValley - 42424 - 16 - 10 - 1

Missoula - 40000 - 4 - 6 - 7

MISSION VALLEY HITTING: Cole Wadsworth 3-5, Holden Emerson 1-3, Cody Haggard 2-3, Aiden Gfroerer 2-4, Brayson DuMont 1-4, Noah Agliano 1-1; RBI: Cole Wadsworth 2, Holden Emerson 3, Haggard 2, Brayson DuMont; 2B; Cody Haggard; 3B: Noah Agliano; HR: Holden Emerson

MISSION VALLEY PITCHING: Justin Brown (3IP, 4H, 4R, 2ER, 3BB, 3SO); Clay Wadsworth (2IP, 0R, 0 ER, 1BB, 2SO)

Sunday, June 1

MISSION VALLEY 4, CRANBROOK 3

MissValley - 00012001 - 4 - 10 - 1

Cranbrook - 00000030 - 3 - 8 - 2

MISSION VALLEY HITTING: Cole Wadsworth 1-5, Holden Emerson 1-4, Cody Haggard 1-3, Wyatt Wadsworth 3-4, Aiden Gfroerer 1-3, Brayson DuMont 2-4, Landon Pablo 1-3; RBI: Emerson, Wyatt Wadsworth 2, Pablo; 2B: Wyatt Wadsworth; 3B: Wyatt Wadsworth

MISSION VALLEY PITCHING: Cole Wadsworth (5 and1/3IP, 3H, 0R, 0ER, 2BB, 8SO); Landon Pablo (2 and 2/3IP, 5H, 3R, 3ER, 2BB, 1SO)

CRANBROOK 11, MISSION VALLEY 4

MissValley - 1003000 - 4 - 7 - 3

Cranbrook - 116012x - 11 - 10 - 4

MISSION VALLEY HITTING: Landon Shoemake 3-4, Holden Emerson 2-4, Aiden Gfroerer 1-3, Noah Agliano 1-3; RBI: Shoemake 3, Gfroerer; 2B: Holden Emerson, Shoemake; HR: Shoemake

MISSION VALLEY PITCHING: Wyatt Wadsworth (2IP, 6H, 8R, 7ER, 5BB, 2SO); Brayson DuMont (4IP, 4H, 3R, 2ER, 2BB)