MEDFORD – In a battle for sole possession of third place in the Southwest Conference, the Roseburg baseball team couldn’t cash in on early opportunities and fell short 3-1 in a game against South Medford at Harry & David Field.
The Indians struggled to come up with the clutch hit on a number of occasions. Roseburg went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position against South Medford’s Jack Thompson and Ethan Whitney.
The Tribe’s best opportunity to score came in the second inning when they loaded the bases with just one out. Thompson gave up back-to-back singles to lead off the inning and then walked Terrell Jacks to fill the bases. The junior battled back and got Brendan Ibarra to ground into an inning-ending double play that kept the game scoreless.
South Medford took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning. Junior Jacob Melton hit a one-out double and Clint Campbell followed with a single. Campbell stole second base to put two runners in scoring position and Jaalen Owens drove in a run with a sacrifice fly off Roseburg starter Cody Johnson.
Johnson gave up a bloop, two-out single to Thompson that made the score 2-0 after three.
The Indians cut the deficit in half with a run in the sixth. Treven Jacks reached base after getting hit by a pitch and Thompson gave up a double to Collin Warmouth to put runners at second and third. Carson Townsend drove in a run with a single to centerfield to make the score 2-1.
It looked like the Indians might have scored the tying run later in the sixth on a ground ball by Zack Mandera. Roseburg had runners at first and third and Mandera hit a hard grounder to third base. The Panthers went for the inning-ending double play and the call at first was close. Mandera slide into the bag trying to beat the throw, but was called out in a hotly debated ruling.
If Mandera had been safe, Roseburg would have scored the tying run. Instead, the Indians trailed by one and South tacked on an insurance run in the home half of the sixth.
Thompson earned the win for South Medford, going 5 1/3 innings and giving up seven hits and one run. Ethan Whitney picked up the save, closing out the final 1 1/3 innings and allowing just one hit.
Roseburg’s Collin Warmouth led the Indians offensively. The sophomore went 3-for-3 with two singles and a double. Luke Lucido went 1-for-3 to extend his hitting streak to 15 games.
Up next, Roseburg will visit first place Sheldon on Saturday. The Indians and Irish will play a doubleheader with game one staring at noon. Follow the game on CBS Sports Radio 1490 The Score or watch the game online at 541radio.com.
ROSEBURG; 000; 001; 0 – 1;8;0
S. MEDFORD; 002; 001; X – 3;6;0
Johnson and Tr. Jacks. Thompson, Whitney (6) and Carle. WP – Thompson (4-3). LP – Johnson (2-5). S – Whitney (1)
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