Dawgs' comeback falls short in loss to Bulls

Thompson Rivers University second baseman Liam Rihela clubbed a three-run home run for the Okotoks Dawgs on Friday. Photo: Thompson River University Athletics

June 21, 2019

By Dan Khavkin

Okotoks Dawgs

Lethbridge, AB - Despite a four-run rally in the eighth inning, the Okotoks Dawgs lost 10-8 to the Lethbridge Bulls on Friday night.

The Dawgs left nine runners on base, while Lethbridge scored eight out of their 10 runs with two outs.

“It wasn’t the number of players we left on base. If we go ahead and shut down teams like we talk about all year long and not give up chances to score, we wouldn’t have the falling point we did,” said Dawgs bench boss Mitch Schmidt. “They took advantage of our mistakes and executed. Plain and simple, they deserved to win, and we didn’t.”

Schmidt added: “It wasn’t that our attitude and effort was not there. We didn’t execute early but those two-out base hits that resulted in so many of their runs brought the guys down for sure. It was a hell of a fight, we needed to start the offence early next time.”

Contrary to his first start of the season, Lewis-Clark pitcher Tanner Simpson was hit around during his second outing, giving up seven runs on 11 hits in four innings.

After the Dawgs tied the game at 1-1 in the second inning on an RBI double from Linn-Benton outfielder Jacob Melton, the Bulls scored four runs in the bottom of the inning to take an early 5-1 lead.

A three-run home run by Thompson Rivers second baseman Liam Rihela, his third in three games, brought the Dawgs to within one run in the third inning. But Simpson surrendered two more runs in the bottom of the fourth.

Lethbridge added three more runs in the fifth and sixth innings to give them a 10-4 lead.

UBC relief pitcher Brendan Logan stepped onto the mound for the Dawgs and tossed scoreless seventh and eighth innings. This set the stage for a late Dawgs’ rally in the top of the eighth.

Bellevue backstop Riley Baasch pulled would club a two-run home run for the Dawgs that trimmed the score to 10-6. Then with two outs, the Dawgs tallied a run on a passed ball and another on an RBI single by shortstop Richard Mascarenas to make the score 10-8 but that was as close the Dawgs would get.

The Dawgs travel back home for the second game of the three-game set Saturday night with the first pitch set for 7:05 p.m.