Broncos baseball team starts season with a home doubleheader-in Pullman

The Lind-Ritzville/Sprague Broncos baseball team stepped onto the diamond for the first time this season on March 22—with a twist.

After the cancellation of the season-opening jamboree in Connell and two league doubleheaders, the Broncos took on the Colfax Bulldogs last Friday in what was supposed to be a home doubleheader. Instead, due to field conditions still not being at an appropriate level at either the Broncos or Bulldogs fields, the two teams traveled to Pullman for a neutral-site matchup at Bailey-Brayton Field, Washington State University’s home stadium.

Colfax dominated the first game of the doubleheader, beating LRS 14-0 with the game being called after five innings due to the 10-run rule. The Broncos were limited to just an infield hit in those five innings while the Bulldogs recorded nine hits, including two doubles and a triple.

“We couldn’t get the bats going. [Colfax’s pitcher] threw the ball pretty hard, he’s a lefty and we’re not used to seeing lefties,” said Broncos head coach Jason Hilzer. “You could tell that we just hadn’t been on the field yet.”

Hilzer noted that his squad hadn’t been able to use the infield of their field in practice prior to the doubleheader against Colfax.

The second game of the evening was a much different affair, however. Colfax held a 2-0 lead going into the bottom half of the fourth inning, when the LRS offense exploded for nine runs.

But the Bulldogs answered with a big inning of its own in the fifth, scoring seven runs to tie the game up at nine. The Broncos scored two more runs in the fifth to take an 11-9 lead and held that lead until the seventh and final frame.

The Broncos got the first out of the inning in the top of the seventh inning, but struggled after that. Hilzer had brought freshman Owen Telecky into the game, who was pitching well, but was nearing his pitch count and gave up two hits following the first out of the inning. Hilzer then called senior Bryce Kelly into the game, who had pitched in the first game but still had about 15 pitches left on his pitch count.

But LRS wasn’t able to stop Colfax’s hot bats, as they scored six runs in the inning to take a 15-11 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh. The Broncos were able to add one more run, but ultimately came up short, losing 15-12.

“One one hand it was disappointing to lose a game, but on the other hand I was very proud of how they came back and competed in that second game,” said Hilzer.

Kelly and juniors Cole Cameron and Spencer Miller all ripped doubles in the game, while senior Bryce Hansen hit a triple. Hilzer estimated that Hansen’s hit traveled about 385 feet before landing, which would have been a home run at LRS’ home field.

Hansen also started on the mound for the Broncos in the second game, and gave up just one run in 2 2/3 innings of work. Hilzer said that Hansen probably could have kept going under normal circumstances, but he doesn’t let his pitchers throw more than 70 pitches in their first outings of the season. Sophomore Drew Kelly and junior Brenden Bell followed Hansen in relief.

The Broncos hosted the Davenport Gorillas in Ritzville on March 26 in a non-league doubleheader. Coverage of that doubleheader will be included in next week’s issue of The Journal.

LRS travels to Odessa today, March 28, to take on the Odessa Tigers at 4 p.m. Just one game will be played in Odessa, while the second game will be played in Ritzville on April 18.