Morgan gets clutch home runs as Outlaws finish strong

The Outlaws posted two wins in their final league games of the season: a 14-3 win at Elmira on Monday, May 7, and a 6-4 victory at Sweet Home a day later, highlighted by two home runs from Zach Morgan.

Sisters ended league play with a 10-5 record, and are currently 17-9 overall.

In Monday's action, the Outlaws tallied their third win against the Falcons this season with an easy 14-3 victory.

Sisters racked up six runs in the second inning to take an early 6-0 lead. Big hits in the inning came from Dillon Tucker and Morgan. Tucker took a first pitch and drilled a ball to right center for a double that scored a run, and later in the inning, Morgan doubled to deep center for three RBI.

The Outlaws tacked on five runs in the sixth, and three in the seventh to secure the win.

Freshman Hunter Spor started on the mound and lasted four-and-one-third innings, and Austin Lake and Dillon Tucker came in as relief.

Spor said, "At the first of the season, I was nervous because we (freshmen) were playing at a level way higher than we were used to. As the season progressed, I settled in. Today, most of my strike-outs were from curve-balls, but my fastball was working too."

Morgan went two-for-three with four RBI, and Taylor Fendall went three-for-four with two RBI. Turner Stutzman went two-for-three from the plate, and Austin Morss was one-for-three with three runs scored.

Coach Reed Rainey said, "We did enough to win the game, but didn't play extremely well. Too many errors for my liking, but we swung the bats pretty well, and took advantage of the 12 walks they gave us. It was a good win. Hunter did a really nice job for us on the mound. For a young freshman, he has pitched very well overall for us this season."

A day later, the Outlaws earned a win on the road against the Huskies.

Morgan did his job, and did it to perfection, both at the plate and on the mound. Zach's homeruns in the first and the fifth stole the show - both two RBI dingers belted into right field.

Zach also went the distance on the mound for the Outlaws. He allowed six hits and four runs, and struck out eight.

Morgan said, "My pitching has felt good all year. Today, my fastball worked well early, and later I was able to complement that with my curveball. I really haven't been hitting as well as I have in the past, but these last two games, I've been able to dial it in, and just in time for playoffs."

Morgan drove in four runs on three hits. Morss had two hits in the contest, and Luz, Fendall, and Tucker each had a single.

The Outlaws have several freshmen on their squad, including Dillon Tucker, who commented on the freshmen players as a whole and their performance so far this season.

"I think we played at a level higher than we thought we could. As freshmen, we had to step up to varsity, and as a team we have really come together. As we head into playoffs, we will need to play loose, but focus on being able to compete with top-tier teams."

On Friday, the Outlaws hosted La Pine, who are currently ranked No 2 in the state in 3A. Teams matched up against each other in a double-header in preparation for the upcoming playoffs. Seniors Bradley Jarvis, Spencer Kemp, Pherry Luz, Zach Morgan, Austin Morss, Taylor Scholl and Turner Stutzman were honored between the two games.

Sisters logged an 8-1 victory over La Pine in the first game, but were bested 2-0 by the Hawks in the second game, even though they outhit them seven to three.

Tucker drove in two runs in the first inning with a line drive to centerfield, and the third run came off an error. Sisters extended their lead to 4-0 in the bottom of the fourth when Morss scored TJ Lawrence on a double to centerfield.

The Hawks got their lone run in the top of the fifth.

Morgan cemented the win for Sisters with a grand slam in the bottom of the sixth. Zach hit the long-ball over the left field fence on a fastball right down the middle.

Zach said, "I knew it was gone as soon as I hit it, and it felt really special because it was on senior day."

Morgan and Morss led the Outlaws with two hits each, and Luz, Lake, and Tucker each had one.

Lake was the winning pitcher for the Outlaws; Austin pitched six innings, allowed one run on six hits, and struck out seven. Stutzman came in and closed out the final inning.

In the second game, the Outlaws out-hit the Hawks, but couldn't get anyone across the plate, and were shut out 2-0.

Luz pitched the first four innings, and allowed two runs on two hits. Stutzman came in and wrapped up the last three innings.

Lawrence went two-for-two at the plate to lead the Outlaws.

Sisters will host Newport in a play-in game on Thursday, May 17. Game time is set for 4:30 p.m.