PREP BASEBALL: Karns delivers game winner as Cd'A sweeps

COEUR d’ALENE — With the weather being unspringlike on Tuesday, Coeur d’Alene coach Erik Karns knew time was going to be a factor, one way or another.

Andrew Karns singled to score Nolan Christ with the game-winning run with one out in the bottom of the sixth inning to send the Coeur d’Alene Vikings over the Post Falls Trojans 7-6 to cap an Inland Empire League sweep at Ted Page Field on Tuesday.

Earlier, Coeur d’Alene defeated Post Falls 8-1.

Due to darkness, the second game was only six innings.

“We knew that we weren’t going to get two full games in,” Karns said. “And with the weather, it was slim to none, so our game plan was to get out to a quick start, hold the lead and keep the lead.”

Cody Chamberlain hit a two-run double to score Austin DeBoer and CD Sharples to give Post Falls a 6-3 lead in the top of the sixth of the second game. Chamberlain finished with three RBIs in the game. Evan Mallory tied the game in the bottom of the fifth at 3-3 on an RBI single, scoring Christ.

“Post Falls is a good, scrappy team,” Karns said. “Chamberlain did a good job of keeping them in the game. In our league, you’ve got to play each inning and they did a good job of taking a lead. And we were fortunate to get out of there with a win.”

“We were right with them, and just couldn’t finish it,” Post Falls coach Kurt Reese said. “We came out flat in that first game and I was again happy with how the kids responded in the second game and almost put together a complete game. We’ll keep grinding to get better. We had some good moments, but just couldn’t close it out.”

In the opener, Karns had a two-out, two-run single to give Coeur d’Alene a 2-0 lead. Evan Mallory scored on a wild pitch to make it 3-0 after two innings.

Austin DeBoer singled to score Langan Naylor to cut the deficit to 3-1 in the third inning for Post Falls, which was held without a hit in the final four innings.

Ryan Schneider struck out seven, but walked five for Coeur d’Alene.

Both teams hit the road on Saturday as Coeur d’Alene (9-3, 4-2) visits Moscow and Post Falls (5-5, 3-3) and Post Falls (5-5, 3-3) visits Sandpoint.

FIRST GAME

Post Falls 001 000 0 — 1 2 1

Coeur d’Alene 031 130 x — 8 7 0

Austin DeBoer, Caleb Elliot (3), Kason Gadley (6) and Jerad Taylor; Ryan Schneider, Owen Benson (7) and James Guyer.

HITS: PF — DeBoer, Sharples. Cd’A — Larson, Mallory, Karns, Schneider, Bridge 3. 2B — none. 3B — none.

SECOND GAME

Post Falls 000 024 — 6 7 2

Coeur d’Alene 000 124 — 7 6 2

Jayden Butler, Langan Naylor (5), Kason Gadley (6) and Clayton Lange; Bryce Stockton, Owen Benson (5), Andrew Karns (6) and Richie Hackett.

HITS: PF — Naylor, Ziegler, DeBoer, Sharples, Chamberlain 3. Cd’A — Mallory 2, Karns, Bridge, Smart, Christ. 2B — Chamberlain, Mallory.

Lake City 14-11

Sandpoint 11-0

SANDPOINT — AJ Currie threw a gem for the second time in four days, pitching a five-hit shutout in the second game as the visiting Timberwolves finished off a sweep of the Bulldogs at War Memorial Field.

Currie, who threw 59 pitches in a five-inning no-hitter Saturday at Moscow, threw 74 in seven innings on Tuesday for Lake City (4-5, 4-2 IEL).

“He’s been real efficient the last two games,” Lake City coach Paul Manzardo said. “When you’re efficient and pounding the zone, and the defense is making plays behind you, you can go longer.”

Eric Bumbaugh hit a three-run inside-the-park homer for the T-Wolves in the sixth inning of the nightcap.

“Bumbaugh is a pretty fast and explosive kid coming off the bases,” Manzardo said. “When you’re playing on a turf field and you don’t have anyone between the ball and the fielder, he’s going to score.”

Camdyn Martindale drove in six runs on the day for Lake City, and Joe DuCoeur was 4 for 5 in the opener. Ethan Taylor knocked in three runs in the second game, two on a seventh-inning double. Leadoff man Cooper Smith scored six runs.

“The first game we were a little bit shaky,” Manzardo said. “The one thing I did like is that we competed every inning and we fought.”

Sandpoint is 2-3, 0-2.

Lake City travels to Lewiston on Saturday for an IEL doubleheader.

FIRST GAME

Lake City 133 041 2 — 14 13 5

Sandpoint 403 300 1 — 11 13 4

Nate Weatherhead, Cooper Reese (4), Zach Garza (5), Camdyn Martindale (7) and Ethan Taylor; Colin Roos, Jack Ringer (2), Jack Zimmerman (4), and Kohlton Wagoner.

HITS: LC — Smith 2, Taylor, Martindale, DuCoeur 4, Garza 2, Carrol, Reynolds 2. Spt — Zimmerman 3, Roop 3, Lehman, Barlow, Wagoner 3, Dillon 2. 2B — Garza.

SECOND GAME

Lake City 050 004 2 — 11 9 0

Sandpoint 000 000 0 — 0 5 1

AJ Currie and Calvin Carrol; Austin Dillon, Blake Sherrill (6), Zeke Roop (6), and Kohlton Wagoner.

HITS: LC — Smith, Taylor, Martindale 2, Bumbaugh, DuCoeur, Newby, Carroll 2. Spt — Lehman, Roop, Butler, Dillon, MacDonald. 2B — Taylor, Martindale, Smith, Roop. 3B — DuCoeur. HR — Bumbaugh.

Lakeland at

Moscow (2), ppd.

MOSCOW — The IEL doubleheader was postponed due to snow.

No makeup date has been set.