La Pine High, which eliminated top-seeded Taft in the tournament semifinals en route to the Class 3A State baseball championship last season, downed the Tigers 5-2 Tuesday in a nonleague game in Prineville.
“We took a step backwards today,” Taft coach Matt Hilgers said. “We did not come out ready to play and win a baseball game. Until we decide that we want play baseball every day that we step on the field and that we are going to be successful in the situations that we have been put in we are going to struggle.”
Junior starter Eli DeMello, who went the distance and struck out five without a walk, led Taft with two of its six hits. Senior Cody Knott drove home a run and the Fisher cousins, Tyee and Trenton, each scored for the Tigers.
“We have to get past accepting failure and work through some of these mistakes that we have been making,” Hilgers said. “We are close to getting there we just have to get over the hump and start playing with confidence.”
The Special District 2 Tigers fell to 2-3, while La Pine of the Mountain Valley Conference improved to 2-1 at Davidson Field.
“We are down a few players right now and some guys are being given opportunities to prove they belong here,” Hilgers said. “We are team and we need to get there as team. Right now, we are not playing as a team yet.”
Taft returns to action at 11:30 a.m. Thursday against Elmira in the Madras Spring Break Tournament.
La Pine 5, Taft 2 TAFT AB R H BI LA PINES 2019 AB R H BI Trenton Fisher 3 1 1 0 Adam Plant 4 1 1 0 Eli DeMello 4 0 2 0 Jose Guillen 3 0 0 0 Cody Knott 4 0 1 1 Alex Farnsworth 3 1 2 0 Tyee Fisher 3 1 0 0 Riley Pinckney 3 1 1 0 Bleize Kimbrogh 3 0 1 0 Bryce Coble 3 0 1 2 Kaden Hindman 2 0 1 0 Oscar Steffens 3 0 1 1 FCO Ramos 2 0 0 0 Teagen Deforrest 3 0 1 0 Jordan Hall 3 0 0 0 Austin Mckittrick 3 1 2 0 Lucas Hindman 3 0 0 0 Aaron Neuroth 2 0 0 0 Dillon Westbrook 0 0 0 0 *Smith 0 1 0 0 TOTALS 27 2 6 1 TOTALS 27 5 9 3 TAFT 100 001 0 -- 2 LA PINE 221 000 x -- 5 LOB--TAFT 2019 8, LA PINES 2019 5. ERR--Lucas Hindman, Trenton Fisher, Jose Guillen. 2B--Bryce Coble. HBP--Kaden Hindman. SACB--Dillon Westbrook. SB--Eli DeMello (3), Trenton Fisher (2), Alex Farnsworth. TAFT IP H R ER BB SO HR Eli DeMello (L) 6.00 9 5 3 0 5 0 LA PINES Alex Farnsworth (W) 3.00 4 1 1 1 1 0 Austin Mckittrick 3.00 2 1 0 1 4 0 Adam Plant 1.00 0 0 0 1 0 0 PB--Adam Plant. SO--Tyee Fisher, Lucas Hindman, FCO Ramos, Jordan Hall, Cody Knott, Teagen Deforrest, Jose Guillen, Bryce Coble, Austin Mckittrick, Adam Plant. BB--Tyee Fisher, FCO Ramos, Trenton Fisher.
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