Last Friday’s home play-off game launching the Bruin boys varsity baseball team into the semi-finals, gave the Bruin boys their ninth straight win going all the way back to first week of May, and put them back on the road to challenge the #4 OSAA ranked, 21-7 Pleasant Hill Billies in Pleasant Hill late Tuesday afternoon.
The visiting Bruins showed up in Pleasant Hill Tuesday afternoon ready to play, stepping into the batters box looking to get a leg up on the Billies, and put runners on the basepaths early, and pushing two runs across the plate in the top half of the first. But the Billies didn’t get to the semi’s without good offense and answered the Bruins with three runs of their own in the first.
Trailing 3-2 after one, Bruin bats would get another run in the top of the second to tie the score before senior right handed pitcher Austin Dietrich shut down the Billie offense in the second and third before the Billies took a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the fourth.
Dietrich shut down Pleasant Hill rallies in the fifth and sixth innings, leaving the Bruin offense trailing by one going into the final inning. And as has been this scrappy groups M/O through out the year, efficiently taking advantage of opportunity when cornered, and Bruin bats came out to play late, scoring three runs in the top of the seventh, taking a 4-6 two point lead into the final half of the final inning of regulation play.
With the Billies post-season flashing before their eyes, Pleasant Hill frantically rallied late, but Dietrich shut the Billies offense down, and the Bruin defense would end Pleasant Hill’s post season aspirations with cold determination, sending the Bruin boys on to the 2024 OSAA 3A Baseball Championships.
The Bruin boys beat the Billies with efficiency, getting 5 runs batted in and scoring their 6 runs off of just 7 hits and 27 at bats. Dietrich went seven innings, allowing 4 runs off of 10 North Valley hits.
“It was a great day for our guys,” coach Wallin told the Compass after the game. “They showed up early and won it late. Such a fun environment to be a part of, and I couldn’t be more proud to be a Bruin!”
Final stop for the Bruin boys is the 2024 OSAA 3A Baseball Championships, Saturday at PK Park at the University of Oregon, to challenge the #3 OSAA ranked, 24-5 Warrenton Warriors, with the first pitch scheduled for 3:30pm.
