Defending home field: Wolfpack make key defensive plays in win over Flathead

Yahoo Sports14h ago6 min readOriginal source →

TL;DR

The Glacier Wolfpack defeated Flathead 7-6 in a tightly contested baseball game, with Kyler Croft pitching 6 2/3 innings and Ryne Gillette hitting a crucial go-ahead double.

Key points

Glacier Wolfpack won against Flathead 7-6
Kyler Croft pitched 6 2/3 innings
Ryne Gillette hit a go-ahead double
Croft struck out two batters and walked one
Coach Erik Brink noted unforced errors affected Croft's performance

Glacier WolfpackFlatheadKyler CroftRyne Gillette

It may not have been as high scoring as the first time, but Crosstown baseball delivered another great matchup.

Kyler Croft threw 6 2-3 innings for the Wolfpack and Ryne Gillette knocked a go-ahead double down the left field line as Glacier took a 7-6 victory over Flathead at Griffin Field Thursday.

The pitch count denied Croft the complete game — he tossed 111 pitches — striking out two and walking one.

“Had to take him out, had no choice,” Glacier coach Erik Brink said. “He probably should have finished the game, but we had some unforced errors ... He was out of gas the last two innings, but I think the last innings and two-thirds were his best innings in the whole game.”

“I think my biggest thing tonight was just throwing down the middle and letting my guy's work,” Croft said. “They did a really good job of that; I knew the guys had my back the whole time.”

Beau Schulz and Brady Buckmaster made their presence felt down the stretch.

Buckmaster made a key tag on Leum Saisbury as the Braves third baseman looked to score on a fly ball that got lost in the lights.

Schulz ended the game with a grab while running from his shortstop position deep into left field, colliding with Neil Pepe after making the catch.

The Braves (6-10) found the scoreboard first as Jacobe Sullenger hit a soft comebacker to Croft, who couldn’t grab the ball and allowed Micah Engle to score. Carter Wigginton then singled to center to make it 2-0. Another run came in on a throwing error later in the inning.

The Wolfpack (9-5) answered in the third, taking advantage of six walks, two balks and a Kaeden Kahler single to take a 4-3 lead.

“We had a couple walks in that inning and then Ryne Gillette comes up and gets a big hit for (Glacier),” Braves coach Richard Burland said. “Overall, I am proud of my boys and how they fought. I’m proud of how they hit, they hit the ball like no other.”

Back-to-back RBI singles from Hunter Fann and Liam Rech restored a Flathead lead at 5-4 in the fourth.

Again, Glacier had the answer as Tate Kahler scored on a passed ball to tie the game at five before Gillette laced one down the third baseline. Teagan Dixon scored from first as Gillette was thrown out trying to extend his hit into a triple.

The Braves had their chance in the seventh as Saisbury and Engle both hit routine fly balls that got lost in the lights, turning into doubles. Miles Arrowsmith reached on a high throw to first that allowed Engle to score.

“A little bit of play under the lights was fun, obviously it affected a bit of the play,” Brink said. “It was fantastic, this was a battle and we are all fighting for a playoff spot.”

Sullenger’s fly out to Schulz in left ended the game with Arrowsmith left on second.

Flathead now heads to Whitefish for a Friday showdown with the Bulldogs at 5 p.m. Glacier welcomes Missoula Big Sky on Saturday at 2:30 p.m.