North Idaho 7, Cheney 6

SANDPOINT — Erik Hansen's two-run triple to right-center field in the bottom of the seventh made all the difference as the Lakers erased a 4-run final frame deficit and walked-off the Summer Hawks in Spokane American Legion 'A' action Thursday at War Memorial Field.

Hansen's RBI triple closed the gap to 6-4 in what was the season opener for both teams. Later in the inning, a steal of home by Hansen followed by a walk with the bases loaded knotted the game up at 6 all. Nixon Wohlschlager then singled to score Mason Balch, who walked earlier in the inning, to cap off the 5-run inning and seal the deal.

"Those were some really big at-bats," first-year head coach Travis Tyler said. "We really hadn't been hitting the ball until that point and they were playing shallow on us. Cy Marshall's single to start the inning and Erik's triple really started the rally and got everyone excited. It was all phenomenal to see."

Balch added an RBI single in the fifth inning as did Hansen in the second to account for the two other Lakers runs on the day. Hansen finished the outing 2-for-3 with three RBI and went a strong 3 2/3 innings on the mound, striking out three batters and allowing just one earned run. Arrow Cramer was solid in relief, striking out six batters over three innings of work.

"It's a testament to the kids' hard work," Tyler said of the winning effort. "Coach Eric (Burk) and I have been coaching these guys for the last couple of years and we know that they are something special. For them to come back from a 6-1 deficit and win it is an amazing accomplishment. It was just really exciting."

Tyler said the season ahead looks promising.

"I told the players that if they believe in themselves and believe in us — nobody is going to stop us, we are our own worst enemy," coach Tyler said. "As long as we're not down on ourselves, happy, having fun and feeling loose, stuff is going to go our way this season."

The 16U North Idaho Lakers (1-0) return to action today at War Memorial Field for a league matchup with the Medical Lake Dirt Dawgs.

Cheney 0 0 0 1 2 1 2 — 6 11 1

North Idaho 0 1 0 0 1 0 5 — 7 9 0

PITCHING

NI — Hansen: 3.2IP, 2H, 1ER, 3BB, 3K. Ar. Cramer: 3IP, 9H, 5ER, 1BB, 6K. As. Cramer: 0.1IP, 0H, 0ER, 1BB, 1K. CHE — Hunter: 6IP, 5H, 2ER, 2BB, 3K. Reisenauer: 0.0IP, 2H, 5ER, 3BB, 0K. Bagnall: 

BATTING

HITS: NI — Hansen 2, Garvin 1, Langlois 1, Balch 1, Marshall 1, Davison 1, Ar. Cramer 1, Wohlschlager 1. CHE — Whitman 3, Reisenauer 2, Hunter 2, Bagnall 1, Shuman 1, Calogne 1, Sonneland 1.

3B — Hansen, Shuman. HR — Whitman. 

RBI: NI — Hansen 3, Balch 1, Wohlschlager 1. CHE — Whitman 2, Bagnall 1, Hunter 1.