By DAVE CAMPBELL
STOCKTON – Bend but do not break.
The Ripon Braves were able to get their runners in scoring position Saturday, but the Spreckels Park A’s pitching staff rose to the occasion each time as Spreckels Park blanked Ripon 10-0 in six mercy-rule shortened innings to open the District 67 Juniors Tournament of Champions at Paul Weston Park.
Lucas Stackpole started on the hill for the A’s and went 2.3 innings, allowing two hits and one walk, striking out the side in the first and fanning six overall. Tommy Miller pitched three innings with just one hit, one walk and four strikeouts with P.J. Pimentel mopping up the last two batters.
Troy Morrow (2 for 3, two RBI, double, run) ended the game in the sixth when he doubled in Lucas Stackpole (2 for 4, two doubles, two runs) and Pimental.
Ripon errors and a balk led to four runs for the A’s in the fifth inning. Miller walked to open the frame, stole second and came around to score on a pair of errors. Morrow reached base on an error, stole second and third and came home on a Texas-League single by Mike Gilmer (2 for 3, RBI). Gilmer came in on a balk and Teagan Hutchinson reached first on a two-base error. Hutchinson took third on the balk and scored on a groundout by Izrael San Nicolas.
Miller reached base four times with a pair of RBI singles and two walks, knocking in Roman Witt in the first inning for the game’s first run and in the third inning he doubled in Stackpole. Miller then stole third and came home when the throw on the steal sailed into left field.
Riley Fanero (2 for 3) had two of the three hits for the Braves.
Spreckels Park faces Tracy North on Tuesday at 5 p.m. Ripon is unable to continue in the tournament due to injuries.
Northgate Rockies 6,
Lathrop Spartans 5
Northgate’s Alan Ortega singled in Brandon Pine in the top of the seventh inning Sunday to break a 5-5 tie.
Ortega finished 2 for 4 with an RBI and a double. Sal Ellis singled in Ortega in the first inning and in the second the Rockies cleared the bases when a dropped strike three was kicked around the infield, scoring three runs.
The Spartans scored three in the third inning. Chatin Sadhra (two runs) singled in Seth Dunn. Josue Valle doubled and scored on a Sadhra single and Shawn Blea singled in Sadhra to tie the score at 4-4.
Northgate faces Salida in a second-round contest Saturday night at 8 and Lathrop faces either Manteca or Tracy American tonight at 8 in an elimination contest.
Tracy North 9, Weston Ranch 8
Tracy North scored two runs in the top of the seventh inning Sunday to take a one-run lead and Weston Ranch was unable to respond in the bottom of the frame.
Josh Ordner scored two runs for Weston Ranch and Joaquin Andrade, Namir Paris and Alejandra Piedra all scored one run apiece.
Weston Ranch plays Patterson this afternoon at 5.
Lathrop Spartans 5, Patterson 4
LATHROP – Lathrop’s Valle singled in Seth Tover in the top of the seventh inning Saturday and that proved to be the difference in the opening-round contest at Mossdale Landing Community Park.
Valle (2 for 4, two RBI) had a two-RBI single to highlight a four-run fourth, scoring Tover (2 for 3, two runs) and Dunn. Blea led the frame off with a single and came home on a double by A. J. Duenez. Dunn (2 for 4, RBI) plated Duenez on a single.
Josh Gutierrez was 2 for 3 for Lathrop.
