Prep Baseball: Shaver’s grand slam powers UVC past Heppner/Ione, 15-7
On a day where Umpqua Valley Christian coach Dave York said the pitching and defense wasn’t at its best, junior Ryan Shaver took up the slack with his best offensive game of the year.
Shaver was 4-for-4 with eight RBIs and UVC powered its way back to the Class 2A/1A state semifinals with a 15-7 win over Heppener/Ione on Friday at Champion Car Wash Field.
The Monarchs will head to Turner, Ore. where they’ll face Crosshill Christian in their fourth consecutive semifinals appearance at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday.
“It’s just so cool to see these guys accomplish something that no one thought they were going to do. Really proud of them,” York said.
Shaver’s biggest swing of the game came in the second inning with two outs and the bases loaded. The junior blasted a 1-0 pitch from Mustangs’ starter Keaton Coiner well beyond the left field fence for a grand slam that put Umpqua Valley Christian (23-6) ahead 8-1.
“Right after I made contact I knew it was going. Just the adrenaline carried me to still sprint (towards first base),” Shaver said. It was the first home run of the season for Shaver who said “It felt so good. It felt amazing.”
“That was awesome,” York said. “I know how much this field means to him and his family and to watch him hit a ball out of the ballpark like that, which he’s been hoping for for a long time. It’s awesome. I got to look at his dad in the stands and his mom. It was a cool moment.”
Shaver said when he got back to the dugout “Everyone was fired up. We were all just going crazy.”
Shaver gave UVC a lead in the first inning with a two-run double. He also drove in a run with a double in the fourth and plated two more runs with a single in the fifth.
Cade Downie contributed to the explosive day for UVC. The junior was 3-for-4 with two RBIs and two runs scored.
“I had a feeling, offensively, we were going to be fine against those guys,” York said. “But we’ve got to pitch it better and defend it better.”
Heppner/Ione (18-7), the second-place team out of Special District 7, did not go quietly. After Shaver’s home run put the Mustangs down by seven, they started to chip away at the deficit.
Heppner/Ione scratched out three runs in the third without getting a hit. An error got the lead-off hitter on base and UVC starting pitcher Teagan Sprague struggled with his accuracy. The junior faced nine batters in the frame and gave up one walk and hit three batters, including one with the bases loaded.
Wild pitches also allowed two runs to score and cut the score down to 8-4.
The Mustangs got within 8-6 in the top of the fourth. Another wild pitch scored a run and Caylan Proudfoot drove-in a run with a groundout.
The Monarchs regained the momentum with three runs in the fourth and another three in the fifth to push in front 14-6.
UVC tacked on a run in the sixth on a triple by Hunter Powell. Heppner/Ione scored its final run in the seventh on a groundout by Mason Haugen.
Sprague got the win and allowed six runs despite giving up just one hit over five innings. He struck out five, walked two and hit four batters.
Coiner took the loss, giving up eight runs on three hits, four walks and one hit batter over 1 2/3 innings. He had two strikeouts.
The win was a milestone for coach Dave York, now in his 26th season coaching Umpqua Valley Christian. It was announced after the game that York had notched his 500th career victory. He became one of 16 coaches in Oregon history to reach the 500-win plateau.
“It’s hard to believe,” York said. He shared that he wasn’t even aware he was getting close to the milestone until UVC Athletic Director Tim Barron asked and York decided to dive into the records to tally up the numbers.
The long-time skipper started at UVC in 1995 and has won five state championships.
Heppner/Ione;013;200;1;—;7;3;2
Umpqua Valley Christ.;350;331;X;—;15;9;2
Coiner, George (2), Rodriguez (5) and M. Wilson; Sprague, Shaver (6) and Blankenship. W — Sprague. L — Coiner. 2B — Shaver 2 (UVC), Chrisenbery (UVC). 3B — Powell (UVC). HR — Shaver (UVC).
