<img height="1" width="1" style="display:none" src="https://www.facebook.com/tr?id=192888919167017&amp;ev=PageView&amp;noscript=1">
Thursday, March 28, 2024
March 28, 2024

Linkedin Pinterest

Stevenson star gets in on the action at prep baseball all-star games

Zach Castro drives in three runs in All-Star games

By Paul Valencia, Columbian High School Sports Reporter
Published: June 1, 2011, 5:00pm
2 Photos
Tommy Thorpe from Evergreen High School pitches in the Curt Daniels Clark County Senior All-Star baseball game in Vancouver, Wa., Wednesday June 1, 2011.
Tommy Thorpe from Evergreen High School pitches in the Curt Daniels Clark County Senior All-Star baseball game in Vancouver, Wa., Wednesday June 1, 2011. (Greg Wahl-Stephens for the Columbian) Photo Gallery

The event is called the Curt Daniels Clark County Senior All-Star Baseball Games, but no one said Clark County had an exclusivity deal.

Zach Castro of Stevenson, representing Skamania County, drove in three runs in the second game, helping the National League stars to a doubleheader sweep Wednesday at Propstra Stadium. The NL won the first game 4-3 and took the second 7-5.

The event features the top senior baseball players from Southwest Washington.

In the first game, Union’s Jacob Virtue tossed two perfect innings of relief — needing 18 pitches to get six outs — to pick up the win. He was named the MVP of the opener.

John Welborn of Camas had a run-scoring single in a two-run fifth inning to give the NL a 4-2 advantage. The AL would get a run in the eighth inning, but never had the potential tying run on base.

The doubleheader featured two eighth-inning games.

The NL’s two runs came moments after Kurt Yinger of Camas hit a two-run homer to tie the game in the fourth inning.

Virtue, though, shut down the AL in his two quick innings — the fifth and sixth.

“It’s just a fun game. Not much pressure,” Virtue said. “A great way to culminate the season. A lot of these guys are going to play college baseball. It was fun to play with them.”

Virtue has accepted an appointment to the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. This was his final high school baseball appearance in Clark County.

“I was happy I didn’t give up any hits,” he said.

It was also the end to a special season for Virtue, who helped Union to the Class 4A Greater St. Helens League title just a year after undergoing major surgery on his pitching elbow.

“It’s a blessing. Not a lot of people in the world get the chance to play high school baseball,” he said. “I’m glad I got to finish my senior year.”

Cody Hill of Skyview and Colton Krueger of Union drove in the first two runs for the NL.

Castro gave the NL the early lead in the first game with a run-scoring single in the bottom of the first. Kody Watts of Skyview would add another run with a sacrifice fly.

In the third inning, Castro made it 4-0 with a two-run triple. He later scored on Hill’s RBI-groundout for a 5-0 advantage.

“Pretty incredible, considering I’m just a small, 1A, 320-person-school kid,” Castro said. “Being up here with the 4A and 3A, it’s pretty cool.”

He acknowledged he was motivated to show the big-school talent that he could play, too.

“I wanted to be the best,” Castro said. “I wanted to represent my school.”

The AL Stars would get all those runs back in the fourth inning. Jake Ripley of Prairie, Logan Grindy of Camas, and Dylan Young of Ridgefield each drove in a run, while two more scored on an error.

In the seventh, La Center’s Nick Deotsch singled, advanced to second on a wild pitch, stole third and waltzed home on an error to break a 5-all tie. Conner King of Camas added a run-scoring single for the final tally.

Prairie’s Chad Michaud pitched the final three innings, striking out five to pick up the win.

By the end of the doubleheader, Castro was thrilled with being part of such a showcase.

“It was really fun, especially seeing all the talent from this area,” Castro said. “It was cool to play with them and be a part of that group.”

CURT DANIELS CLARK COUNTY ALL-STAR BASEBALL

Game 1

NATIONAL 4, AMERICAN 3

National 110 020 00–4 10 1

American 000 200 01–3 6 0

National

Pitchers — Tommy Thorpe 4 IP; Jacob Virtue 2 IP, win; Alex Nevue 1 IP; Kody Watts 1 IP, save. Highlights — Caleb Whalen 1-3; Cody Hill 1-2, RBI; Connor Perry 1-2, 2B; Conner King 1-1; Watts 1-2, 2B; Matt Hanson 1-2, 2B; John Welbord 1-2, RBI; Nohi Brede 1-1; Skyler Frasier 1-4; Jordan Harrington 1-1, Colton Krueger 0-1, RBI.

American

Pitchers — Kurt Yinger 4 IP; Keegan Duz-Aguilar 4 IP, loss. Highlights — Ryan Erdwins 2-2; Anthony Collura 1-1; Yinger 1-2, HR, 2 RBI; Steven Nichols 1-1; Dominique Lincoln 1-1.

Game 2

NATIONAL 7, AMERICAN 5

American 000 500 00–5 7 2

National 203 000 2x–7 6 1

American

Pitchers — Zach Carter 3 IP; Trevor Goforth 3 IP; Marcus Deal 2 IP, loss. Highlights — Spencer Hamilton 2-3; Steven Nichols 1-2; Jeremy Faulkner 1-1, 2B; Dominique Lincoln 1-2; Jake Ripley 0-1, RBI; Logan Grindy 0-0, RBI; Dylan Young 1-1, RBI; Ross Campbell 1-1.

National

Pitchers — Kevin Cotter 3 IP; Jordan Harrington 1/3 IP; Nick Deotsch 12/3 IP; Chad Michaud 3 IP, win, 5 Ks. Highlights — John Welborn 1-2; Zach Castro 2-2, 3B, 3 RBI; Kody Watts 0-1, RBI; Dotsch 1-1; Conner King 1-2, RBI; Skyler Frasier 1-1.

Loading...
Columbian High School Sports Reporter