Date: 5/7/09

Skyline vs Garfield

@ Skyline HS 3:45 PM

Skyline -6 Garfield-5

Eleven Spartan seniors stepped on the home turf at Skyline stadium to play their last home game and came away with a 6-5 win against conference foe Garfied on Thursday. This Saturday they will lead their team into the KINGCO tournament and face off against Bothel at 10:00 AM at Woodinville HS with high hopes of extending their season in the state tournament and getting to Safeco Field for a shot at a state championship.

Things got off to a slow start for the Spartans as Garfield jumped out to a quick 4-0 lead off starter Conner Lawhead in the 1st inning, but in the 4th, Skyline batted around and scored 5 runs. Ryan Somers started the inning with a triple, Ryan Gilchrist walked and William Chandler reached on an error, scoring Somers. Jacob Shannon reached on a fielders choice erasing Gilchrist for out #1, Tony Beattie walked and Kris Hedberg singled sharply to right field scoring Chandler and pinch runner Mikey Smith. Kyle McGowan walked and Shawn Ellis singled in Beattie followed by a another hit by Somers to score Hedberg. In the 5th, Garfield scratched out an unearned run off reliever Jim Carnes who came on in the 4th to take over the pitching duties to knot the score at 5-5. In the 6th, Skyline came right back when Chandler walked, moved to 2nd base on a groundout by Shannon and scored on an RBI single by Tony Beattie. Carnes held the Garfield bats at bay the rest of the way to secure the win for the Spartans and get his first varsity win of the year.

(WP) Jim Carnes (1-0) 4IP, 0ER, 0 H, 2K, 2BB

Conner Lawhead 3 IP, 4ER, 5H, 4K, 1BB

Kris Hedberg 2-3, 2RBI, Shawn Ellis 2-3, Ryan Somers 2-2, RBI, Tony Beattie 1-2, RBI, Jake Knecht 1-3, Jacob Shannon 1-3, Mikey Smith 2B.

Skyline 13-6, 10-5 KINGCO

Date: 5/1/09

Skyline vs Redmond

@ Skyline HS 3:45 PM

Skyline -2 Redmond-3

Skyline lost a tough one 3-2 against conference leader Redmond on Friday. It was their 3rd loss in as many games this week. The good news is that the pitching and defense have held up their end of the bargain and we are just waiting for the Spartans to unload at the plate like we know they are capable of doing. Skyline jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the 3rd after Kris Hedberg walked and was sacrificed to 2nd by Shawn Ellis. Hedberg moved to 3rd on a groundout and later scored on a wild pitch. Redmond came back in the 4th off starter Blake Fulghum, scoring 3 runs on 4 hits in the inning. Fulghum settled down and held Redmond scoreless the rest of the way posting 8 strikeouts and allowing only 6 hits. The Spartans rallied in the 5th to score again after Hedberg singled, moved to 2nd on a balk and scored on Jake Knecht's RBI single to make it 3-2.

LP) Blake Fulghum (4-3) 7IP, 3ER, 6 H, 8K, 1BB

Jake Knecht 1-3, RBI, Jacob Shannon, Kris Hedberg, Shawn Ellis, and William Chandler all had 1 single apiece.

Skyline 13-6, 10-5 KINGCO

Date: 4/29/09

Skyline vs Issaquah

@ Issaquah HS 3:45 PM

Skyline -1 Issaqauh-2

Jared Lemke pitched a whale of a game on Wednesday… leaving after 6 innings with the score tied 1-1 and allowed just two hits. Skyline jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning, after Ryan Gilchrist walked and William Chandler singled him to 3rd. Jacob Shannon lifted a deep fly to right that scored Gilly. The score remained 1-0 till the 6th when Issaquah tied it on an RBI double by Michael Dixon. In the bottom of the 7th, Peyton Harrod came on the relieve Lemke and got the 1st out on a pop-up to Gilchrist. A walk, base hit and intentional walk loaded the bases and a sacrifice fly to center was just deep enough for the Issaquah runner to beat Knecht's throw to the plate for the game winner.

Skyline plays Redmond at SHS on Friday so all you Skyline faithful need to bring some energy to the game with hopes that our son's will kick it up a notch.

Jared Lemke 6IP, 1ER, 2H, 2K, 5BB, 1HP

LP) Peyton Harrod 2/3IP, 1ER, 2BB

Jake Knecht, Tony Beattie, William Chandler, Jacob Shannon, Kris Hedberg all had 1 hit apiece.

Skyline 13-5, 10-4 KINGCO

Date: 4/27/09

Skyline vs Newport

@ Skyline 3:45 PM

Skyline -1 Newport-8

The Newport Knights waltzed in to Skyline stadium on Monday and whipped the Spartans 8-1. The Spartans had several opportunities early to score but couldn't muster a big hit in crucial situations. Their best opportunity came in the 2nd inning down 2-0 when William Chandler was hit by a pitch, Jacob Shannon singled him to second and Tony Beattie walked to load the bases with one out. A strikeout and ground out ended the ralley and their chance to put pressure on Newport's pitcher. Newport then rallied for two more runs in the 4th off starter Adrian Sampson and then tacked on 4 more in the 6th to put the game out of reach. Skyline rallied to score their lone run in the 7th after Kris Hedberg reached on an error, Jake Knecht walked and Hedberg scored after a hit by Ryan Somers and a throwing error.

LP) Adrian Sampson (6-1), 6 1/3 IP, 8R, 5ER, 8H, 3K, 2BB, 1HP

Peyton Harrod 2/3IP, 2K, 1 BB.

Jake Knecht 1-2, 2SB, 2BB, Tony Beattie 1-2, Jacob Shannon 1-3,

Skyline 13-4, 10-3 KINGCO

Date: 4/23/09

Skyline vs Inglemoor

@ Eastlake 3:45 PM

Skyline -11 Eastlake-3

Fifteen hits… count em… 15 hits. The Spartans broke out some new bats on their way down the hill to beat up on 4 different Eastlake pitchers to record a season high 11 runs. Down 1-0 after the 1st inning, Sean Penberthy started a three run rally in the 2nd with a single, followed by a single by Ryan Gilchrist and 12 pitch walk to William Chandler. Penberthy was balked home by the Eastlake pitcher and Tony Beattie delivered a clutch 2 run single to score Gilchrist and Chandler. In the 4th inning, Skyline tacked on 4 more runs when Gilchrist walked with 1 out and Chandler and Jacob Shannon singled. With two outs Kris Hedberg doubled in Chandler and pitch runner Kyle McGowan and Jake Knecht followed that up with a single to score Hedberg. Gilchrist singled again in the 5th, moved to second on a fielding error and scored on Chandlers single to left. The Spartans scored 3 more times in the 6th after singles by Shawn Ellis and Knecht and an RBI double by Ryan Somers and a 2 RBI single by Gilchrist. Not withstanding the offensive onslaught, starter Blake Fulghum was masterful in his 6 innings 97 pitch performance, allowing 2 runs on 6 hits and 7 strikeouts. For his effort he recorded his 4th win of the year. Jared Lemke pitched the 7th allowing a run on 2 hits and recorded 2 K's.

(WP) Blake Fulghum (4-2), 6 IP, 2R, 2ER, 6H, 7K, 3BB

Jared Lemke 1IP, 1R, 1ER, 2H, 2K.

Ryan Gilchrist 3-3, 3R, 2RBI, William Chandler 3-3, 1RBI, Kris Hedberg 2B, 2RBI, Jake Knecht 2-4, RBI, Tony Beattie 2RBI, Jacob Shannon 1-3, 1RBI, Ryan Somers 2B, RBI, Shawn Ellis 2-5,

Skyline 13-3, 10-2 KINGCO

Date: 4/21/09

Skyline vs Inglemoor

@ SHS 3:45 PM

Skyline -6 Inglemoor-2

The Skyline Spartans erupted for 4 runs in the first inning and came away with a slick 6-2 win against conference foe Inglemoor on Tuesday. Inglemoor got of the gate first plating a run off starter Adrian Sampson. In Skyline's half of the 1st, Shawn Ellis and Jake Knecht started the inning with back to back singles followed by a walk to Ryan Somers. Sean Penberthy grounded into a fielders choice forcing Ellis out at home and then Ryan Gilchrist single sharply to left to score Knecht and Somers. With two outs in the inning, Jacob Shannon lined a single to left that scored Penberthy and Gilchrist to make it 4-1. Skyline scored again in the 3rd after Knecht led off with a walk and Somers doubled to right. Knecht scored on the play after the Inglemoor right fielder missed a cutoff and the ball scooted in the outfield. In the 5th, Sean Penberthy walked, Gilchrist singled and William Chandler walked to load the bases. Two pitches later, the Inglemoor pitcher balked and Penberthy scored to make it 6-1. Sampson was marvelous for the next 6 innings surrendering just 3 more hits and striking out 7 to complete his 6th win of the year.

(WP) Adrian Sampson (6-0), 7 IP, 2R, 1ER, 4H, 9K, 4BB, 1HP

Ryan Gilchrist 2-3, 2RBI, Jacob Shannon 1-3 2RBI, Ryan Somers 1-2, 2B, , Shawn Ellis 2-4, Jake Knecht 1-3, 2R, Kyle McGowan 1-1.

Skyline 12-3, 9-2 KINGCO

Date: 4/17/09

Skyline vs Bothell

@ Bothell HS HS 6:00 PM

Bothell 7 - Skyline 2

The great Nuke LaLoosh of Bull Durham fame said it best… "sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, and sometimes it rains". A rainout would have been nice, but instead, the Skyline Spartans ran into a buzz saw in Bothell HS. Everything Bothell hit… found a hole (15 times as a matter of fact). Every ball Skyline hit was caught (4 of them on diving plays). Miraculously 5 fell for hits. The duo of Skyline pitchers (Blake Fulghum and Peyton Harrod) struck out 12 Bothell hitters… pretty impressive considering there were only 6 other outs made in the game. It was Bothel’s night and the Spartan will reload for the next game.

On a bright note… Ryan Somers continued his torrid hitting with a double in 2 at bats, Shawn Ellis, Jake Shannon, Ryan Gilchrist and William Chandler all singled with Willy and Gilly both picking up RBI's.

(LP) Blake Fulghum (3-2), 4 IP, 7R, 6ER, 13H, 9K, 1HP

Peyton Harrod 2 IP. 0R, 2H, 3K, 1BB, 1HP

Jacob Shannon 1-3, Ryan Somers 1-2 2B, Ryan Gilchrist 1-3, RBI, Shawn Ellis 1-3, William Chandler 1-2, RBI.

Skyline 11-3, 8-2 KINGCO

Date: 4/15/09

Skyline vs Ballard

@ Skyline HS 3:45 PM

Skyline -10 Ballard- 5

Through two innings of play on Wednesday, it appeared that Ballard was much more ready to play than the Spartan 9, jumping all over Adrian Sampson's fastball in the first two innings scoring 4 times on 7 hits. However, the tide turned in a hurry in the 3rd inning when the Spartans rallied to score 8 times to take the lead for good. It all started with a Jacob Shannon single, who was forced out at 2nd base on a Shawn Ellis fielders choice. Ryan Somers singled and William Chandler was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Sean Penberthy singled home Ellis and Somers to make the score 4-2. Ryan Gilchrist laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to move Chandler and Penberthy into scoring position, then Jake Knecht delivered a clutch two out single to score Chandler and Penberthy to tie the score at 4-4. Still with two outs, Tony Beattie and Kris Hedberg walked to load the bases to bring Jacob Shannon back to the plate for the second time in the inning and on a 3-2 pitch he crushed a double down the left field line scoring Knecht and Beattie. Hedberg later scored on an Ellis double in the right centerfield gap to complete to scoring. If there was any wind left in Ballard's sail, Sampson quickly snatched it away by striking out 9 of the next 11 hitters he faced. He was absolutely dominating the next 4 innings and finished his 6 innings of work with a season high 12 strikeouts. Skyline would rally to score two more runs in the 6th on a Somers triple, followed by an RBI single by Gilchrist, an infield hit by Knecht and a run scoring single by Tony Beattie. Reliever Conner Lawhead pitched a perfect 7th by striking out two to end the game.

(WP) Adrian Sampson (5-0), 6 IP, 5R, 4ER, 8H, 12K, 1HP

Conner Lawhead 1 IP. 0R, 0H, 2K

Jacob Shannon 2-3, 2B, 2RBI, Ryan Somers 2-4, 3B, 2R, Jake Knecht 2-4, 2RBI, Sean Penberthy 2-4 2RBI, Tony Beattie 1-2, 2BB, RBI, Ryan Gilchrist 1-3, RBI, Shawn Ellis 2B.

Skyline 11-2, 7-1 KINGCO

Date: 4/14/09

Skyline vs Roosevelt

@ Skyline HS 4:45 PM

Skyline -5 Roosevelt-4

If anyone questioned the dedication and commitment of the Skyline coaching staff you should have brought cameras to the varsity diamond to record coach Tambo and Jenson raking the field into playable shape so Skyline could make up their Monday rainout game against Roosevelt. As it turned out it, the extra field work paid off when Skyline recorded its 7th conference win. The Spartans quickly jumped out to a 3-0 lead after a Ryan Somers single, a walk to William Chandler and RBI hits by Sean Penberthy and Jake Knecht. In the 2nd inning, Skyline plated another run after a single by Tony Beattie, Shawn Ellis and Ryan Somers. Roosevelt tied the game in the 3rd inning, where the score remained 4-4 until the bottom of the 7th. Ryan Somers singled (his 4th hit of the game), William Chandler singled and Sean Penberthy drove home Somers with a game winning hit into right center field. Jared Lemke tossed 6 solid innings, allowing 6 hits and 4K's. Blake Fulghum came on to relieve Lemke and pitched a perfect 7th to record his 3rd win of the year.

(WP) Blake Fulghum (3-1), 1 IP, 0R, 1K

Jared Lemke 6 IP, 4R, 3ER, 6H, 4K, 2B

Ryan Somers 4-4, 2R, RBI, Sean Penberthy 3-4 2RBI (GW), Tony Beattie 1-3, Ryan Gilchrist 1-2, RBI, Kris Hedberg 1-3, Jake Knecht RBI

Skyline 10-2, 7-1 KINGCO

Date: 4/11/09

Skyline vs Eastside Catholic

@ Skyline HS 1:00 PM

Skyline -2 Eastside Catholic-5

#1 ranked Eastside Catholic charged in to Spartan Stadium and stole a non-conference game from #6 ranked Skyline 5-2. EC's starting pitcher, Matt Boyd who is headed for Oregon State next year quieted the Spartan bats allowing only 5 hits and recorded 11 K's. Skyline jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead after Ryan Gilchrist walked and moved to second on an errant pickoff and scored on a single by Jake Knecht. Eastside Catholic rallied for 2 runs in the 3rd off starter Peyton Harrod and scored 3 more times off reliever William Chandler to take a 5-1 lead. Skyline mounted a comeback in the 6th when Ryan Somers was hit by a pitch and Ryan Gilchrist reached on an error. With runners on 1st and 2nd, Knecht came through again with a run scoring single, but the rally died there on Boyd's 11th strikeout.

(LP) Peyton Harrod 0-1, 3IP, 2R, 2ER, 4H, 1K, 3BB, 2HP

William Chandler 3IP, 3R, 4H, 2K, 1BB, 2HP

Sean Penberthy 1IP, 1H, 1BB,

Jake Knecht 2-3, 2RBI, SB , Jake Shannon 2-3

Skyline 9-2, 6-1 KINGCO

Date: 4/9/09

Skyline vs Woodinville

@ Skyline HS 3:45 PM

Skyline -3 Woodinville 2

In a clash of KINCO titans on Thursday, the Spartans squeaked out another win against Woodiville on the superb pitching arm of Adrian Sampson. Sampson went the distance, striking out 9 on 5 hits. Sampson was at his best the final 3 innings with the game on line striking out 4 of the last 9 hitters he faced. Skyline managed only 5 hits in the game but wasted no time in the first when Sean Ellis tripled to lead off the game. He scored a batter later on an RBI single by William Chandler. Woodinville tied the game at 1-1 in the 2nd inning but the Spartans rallied to score 2 more runs in the third on a double by Ellis and a run scoring single by Ryan Somers. Somers then stole 2nd and scored what turned out to be the play of the game. On Sean Penberthy ground ball to the shortstop, Somers broke hard for 3rd, as the shortsop fielded the ball and threw Penberthy out on a bang bang play at 1st, Somers rounded 3rd and was waved home by coach Tambo and just beat the throw to score.

(WP) Adrian Sampson 4-0, 7IP, 2R, 2ER, 5H, 9K, 3BB

Sean Ellis 2-3, 3B, 2B, Ryan Somers 1-3, RBI, William Chandler 1-3 RBI,

Skyline 9-1, 6-1 Kinco

Date: 4/8/09

Skyline vs Mt Rainier

@ Skyline HS 3:45 PM

Skyline -6 Mt Rainier 3

The Spartans came away with a nice 6-3 win over non-league opponent Mt Rainier on Wednesday. Senior Jared Lemke pitched a complete game 5 hitter yielding just 2 earned runs and 1 K to earn his 2nd win of the year. Down 1-0 in the 4th, Ryan Gilchrist reached on an error to set the table for Jake Knecht's home run to left center that put the good guys ahead 2-1. In the 5th, Skyline scored again to go up 3-1 after a double by Ryan Somers and RBI ground out by William Chandler. In the 6th, Knecht and Nate Litka had back to back singles and were moved into scoring position by Tony Beattie's perfect sac bunt. Jake Shannon singled in Knecht, his second hit of the game, and Sean Ellis tripled to deep left center to score Litka. Mt Rainier plated 2 runs off Lemke in the 7th but the game ended on a double play from Gilchrist to Somers to Chandler.

(WP) Jared Lemke 2-0, 7IP, 3R, 2ER, 5H, 1K, 6BB

Jake Knecht 2-3, HR, 2RBI, 2R, Sean Ellis 3B, RBI, Ryan Somers 2B, William Chandler 1-3 RBI, Jake Shannon 2-3, 2B, RBI,

Skyline 8-1, 5-1 Kinco

Date: 4/7/09

Skyline vs Lake Washington

@ Lee Johnson Field 7:00 PM

Skyline -3 Lake Washington-2

The Skyline faithful that made the trip to Kirkland to watch the Spartans and Kangaroos battle for conference supremacy might have been treated to one of the best HS baseball games of the year. Skyline jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead in the 1st inning after a walk to Sean Ellis, who moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on William Chandler's single. Chandler would later score on another wild pitch. Skyline scored their 3rd and final run on a deep home run to center field off the bat of Sean Penberthy. Senior Blake Fulghum was dominating for the first 5 innings, striking out 10 on 5 hits and 2 runs. Fulghum's Big K performance was highlighted by striking out the side in the 1st and 3rd innings and 2 strikeouts each in the 2nd and 5th innings. Peyton Harrod came in to relieve Fulghum in the 6th and got 3 quick outs on 2 pop ups and a ground out to Gilchrist. In the 7th, Harrod got 2 quick ground ball outs, both to Gilchrist. Then things got a little dicey. The next three batters reached on a walk, single and walk to load the bases, and on a 3-2 pitch Harrod got his final out on a ground ball to Ryan Somers who threw to Chandler to complete his 2nd save of the year.

(WP) Blake Fulghum 2-1, 5IP, 2R, 2ER, 5H, 10K, 3BB

(SV) Peyton Harrod 2IP, 1H, 3BB

Sean Penberthy HR, RBI, William Chandler 2-4, RBI, Nate Litka 2B, Sean Ellis, Ryan Somers, Ryan Gilchrist, Jake Shannon and Jake Knecht all had singles.

Skyline 7-1, 5-1 Kinco

Date: 4/4/09

Redmond Vs Skyline

Hartman Park, Redmond

Score: Skyline 6…Redmond 1

For the second consecutive day the sun shined and the Spartan bats were alive once more collecting 9 hits for the day in route to a 6-1 win over the Mustangs of Redmond High.

Junior Adrian Sampson pitched masterfully once again taking a 2 hit, 1 walk, no run performance into the seventh inning. With Skyline leading 6-0 Redmond’s third baseman Michael Conforto took a 1-1 pitch from Sampson over the center field wall for a home run for Redmond’s only run of the game. After giving up a double to Dylan Davis the Redmond DH in the next at bat Sampson gave way to reliever Peyton Harrod who promptly struck out the last two Redmond hitters to preserve the win for Skyline.

The Spartans scoring started in the second inning with consecutive singles by Ryan Gilchrist and Sean Penberthy. Sophomore Nate Litka moved them over with a beauty of a sac bunt. Gilchrist scored on a fielders choice off Tony Beattie’s bat and Beattie scored off a double to right center from catcher Jacob Shannon. Redmond senior pitcher Mac Acker kept the Spartans relatively quiet until the top of 6^th where he walked three out of four hitters. Beattie’s one out single scored Gilchrist and Penberthy. Skyline picked up two more in the sixth when Chandler and Gilchrist scored again on a 2 RBI single from Penberthy.

Penberthy went 2-3 on the day with two singles and 2 RBI’s, Shannon also went 2-3 with an RBI and an extra base hit double. Tony Beattie’s 3 RBI’s helped the cause greatly. Ellis, Somers, Chandler, Gilchrist all had hits Saturday.

Date: 4/3/09

Garfield Vs Skyline

Location & Time of Game: Bobby Morris Field , Capital Hill, Seattle.

Results of Game: Score: Skyline 6…Garfield 0

Finally the weather gods shined upon the Spartans on a sunny 50 degree Friday afternoon when the boys of Sparta racked up a win against Garfield 6-0 at Bobby Morris Park in the Capital Hill area of Seattle.

Senior Jared Lemke pitched well in his first start of the season allowing no runs on 4 hits and 3 walks in six full innings of work. Lemke got plenty of help from his defense with the infield of Ellis, Somers, Gilchrist and Chandler netting 4 double plays on the Bobby Morris field turf to kill Garfield rallies. Senior Blake Fulghum came in for the Garfield half of the seventh and after facing just 3 hitters the game was the Spartans.

The Spartans scored early with a Shawn Ellis single and a Ryan Somers walk to start the game in the top of the first. A sac fly from Jake Knecht and a single by Sean Penberthy scored Ellis then Somers. The bats were relatively quiet until the fifth when the Spartans came alive with Somers second walk of the day followed by a single by William Chandler and Ryan Gilchrist single RBI to score Somers. Penberthy promptly tripled to right center scoring Chandler and Gilchrist moving the score to 5-0 Spartans. The gang from Sammamish got one more run in the sixth from Anthony Beattie after he singled, moved to second on a wild pitch and eventually scored on a Ellis Sac Fly.

Penberthy went 2-4 on the day with a single, a triple and 3 RBI’s, Somers 2-2 (two singles) with 2 walks, 2 runs scored and Ellis, Chandler, Gilchrist & Beattie all collecting hits.

Date: 3/30/09

Skyline vs Issaquah

@ Skyline HS 3:45 PM

Skyline -8 Issaquah -1

Bill Dow, the voice of Skyline's home baseball games, made his usual announcement of the starting line-up for the good guys in Spartan green. As he named off the outfielders and infielders he waited until last to announce the day's starting pitcher… Adrian "Superman" Sampson. I could see Sampson crack an embarrassing grin by the vote of confidence, but as I turned to the Issaquah on deck circle, I noticed the Issaquah batters nervously chuckling, wondering what was in store for them for the next 7 innings. As "The Bill" foreshadowed, Sampson brought his "A" game and shut down Issaquah for an 8-1 conference win. Skyline wasted no time scoring a run in the 1st off a walk to Sean Ellis, Ryan Somers grounded into a fielders choice and then promptly stole 2nd base and scored on a fielding error by Issaquah's shortstop Grant Gallatly. In the 2nd, Skyline scored 3 more runs on a single by Sean Penberthy, a walk to Nate Litka, who were expertly bunted into scoring position by Tony Beattie and brought home by Jacob Shannon when he lined a single to left. Shannon later scored in the inning on an RBI sac fly by William Chandler. In the 4th inning the Spartans erupted for 3 more runs on a hit by Sean Ellis, an RBI triple by William Chandler and RBI single by Jake Knecht. Knecht quickly stole 2nd, moved to 3rd on a groundout and scored on a wild pitch. Ryan Somers drove home Tony Beattie for Skyline's 8th run in the 5th.

(WP) Adrian Sampson 2-0, 6IP, 0R, 5H, 11K, 1BB

Conner Lawhead 1 IP, 1R, 1ER, 1H

Sean Ellis 2-3, Ryan Somers 1-3, RBI, William Chandler 3B, 2RBI, Jake Shannon 1-3, 2RBI, Kyle McGowan 1-1, Nate Litka 1-3, Jake Knecht 1-4, RBI, 2SB, Sean Penberthy 1-3.

Skyline 4-1

Date: 3/26/09

Skyline vs Newport

@ Newport HS 3:45 PM

Skyline -4 Newport -6

It's early spring, but it still has a grip on the Skyline bats as the Spartans could only muster 5 hits off 3 Newport pitchers and lost 6-4. Ryan Somers must feel like he is in Arizona because the weather has had no impact on his swing as he went 2-4 with a two run homer and a double. Somers first homer of the year put Skyline up 2-0 till the 5th when Newport plated 6 runs off starter Blake Fulghum. Fulghum had only allowed 1 hit through the first four innings and had recorded 5 K's till the wheels fell off. Peyton Harrod relieved Fulghum in the 5th and ended the inning and also pitched a flawless 6th to keep Skyline close. In the 6th, Skyline rallied to score their 3rd run on a walk to Jake Knecht, a hit by Ryan Gilchrist and back to back walks to Sean Penberthy and Kris Hedberg. With the bases loaded and no outs Newport's pitcher struck out the next three batters to end the threat. Skyline scored again in the 7th on a double by Somers and an RBI groundout by Gilchrist.

(LP) Blake Fulghum 5 1/3IP, 6R, 6ER 8H, 6K, 1BB

Peyton Harrod 1 1/3 IP, 0R, 0H, 2K

Ryan Somers 2-4, HR, 2B, 2RBI, Ryan Gilchrist 1-3, 1RBI, William Chandler 1-3, Jake Shannon 1-3

Skyline 3-1

Date: 3/24/2009

Skyline vs Eastlake

@ Skyline HS 3:45 PM

Skyline -3 Eastlake -2

Skyline opened up conference play with a nice come from behind 3-2 victory against Eastlake on Tuesday. Down 1-0 going into the bottom of the 6th inning, Mikey Smith reached on a error and moved to second base on a perfect asacrifice bunt by Sean Penberthy. Ryan Somers then delivered a run scoring single to score Smith and tie the game 1-1. Jake Knecht was hit by a pitch to move Somers to second to set the table for senior Ryan Gilchrist, who delivered a clutch 2 out double (his 3rd hit of the game) into the left field gap. Somers scored easily and Knecht raced home from 1st base to score the third run in the inning. Junior Adrian Sampson was dominating for 6 1/3 innings giving up just 1 run on 1 hit, while striking out 6. In the 7th, Eastlake scored again to make it 3-2 after back to back hits, a walk and hit batter off reliever Jared Lemke, forcing Coach Tambo to call upon junior Peyton Harrod to end the threat. Harrod came in throwing darts and got a ground ball to shortstop Jacob Shannon. What looked like an easy play turned nasty when the ball took a bad hop on Shannon who knocked it down and threw to Kris Hedberg at first who had to make a game saving scoop to secure the win.

(WP) Adrian Sampson 6 1/3IP, 1R, 0ER 1H, 6K, 4BB

Jared Lemke 1/3 IP, 2H, 1 ER, 1K, 1BB, 1HP

(SV)Peyton Harrod 1/3 IP, 0R, 0H,

Ryan Gilchrist 3-3, 2B, 2RBI, Ryan Somers 2-2, 1RBI,

Skyline 3-0

Date: 3/21/09

Skyline vs O'dea

@ Skyline HS 12:00 PM

Skyline -7 O'dea -6 (8 innings)

Skyline came from behind in dramatic fashion in the bottom of the 8th inning to beat a scrappy O'dea team 7-6 on Saturday. With the game tied 6-6, shortstop Jacob Shannon led off the inning with a sharp liner to left, followed by a walk to Sean Penberthy. With runners on 1st and 2nd, Tony Beattie laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt and the O'dea pitcher threw widly to 1st base allowing pinch runner Nate Litka to score the game winner. Down 3-0 in the 3rd, DH Ryan Gilchrist got things going with a double to left followed by a walk to Mikey Smith. Both runners moved up a base after a balk call and Gilchrist scored on a deep sacrifice fly to left by Ryan Somers. Smith smartly tagged from second and slid safely into 3rd and scored on a groundout by William Chandler. Relievers Peyton Harrod and Jared Lemke kept the Odea hitters scoreless for the next three innings until the 5th when Skyline grabbed a 5-3 lead on a 3 run home run off the bat of William Chandler. Chandler's bomb carried a whopping 425 feet according to asst coach John Jenson who found the ball. Tony Beattie got things going with a single and Ryan Somers walked which set the table for Chandler's blast. O'dea clawed back to take the lead 6-5 in their half of the 7th off reliever Chandler. In the bottom half of the inning with one out, Ryan Somers tripled and scored on a deep fly ball off the bat of Jake Knecht that extended the game into extra innings.

Junior Adrian Sampson started the game and was dominating for just an inning to tune up for his next start Tuesday against conference foe Eastlake. Junior, Peyton Harrod also pitched well holding O'dea to no runs and no hits for two innings.

(WP) William Chandler (1-0), 2IP, 3R, 5H, 1K

Adrian Sampson 1IP, oR, 1H, 1K

Blake Fulghum 2 IP, 3R, 4H, 3K,

Jared Lemke 1 IP, 2H, 0 R, 1K,

Peyton Harrod 2 IP, 0R, 0H, 2

William Chandler 1-2, HR, 4 RBI, Ryan Somers 1-2, 3B, Ryan Gilchrist 1-2, 2B Anthony Beattie 1-3,

Skyline 2-0

Date: 3/17

Skyline vs Auburn @ Skyline HS 3:45 P

Skyline 9 Auburn 4

Skyline wasted no time jumping out to a quick 3-0 lead over non-conference rival Auburn HS on Tuesday. Ryan Somers doubled and scored on William Chandler's RBI single. Jake Knecht singled and Chandler scored on an RBI groundout by Sean Penberthy. Knecht scored Skyline's 3rd run in the inning by stealing third and scoring on an errant throw to third by Auburn's catcher. Skyline scored another run in the 2nd inning on a walk to Jacob Shannon and RBI single by Ryan Gilchrist. The Spartans scored 4 more times in the 3rd after a leadoff single by Knecht, Kris Hedberg reached on an error, Penberthy grounded out to score Knecht. Tony Beattie singled home Penberthy and Mikey Smith doubled. In the 4th inning, back to back hits by Knecht and Aaron Caditz followed by an RBI Sac fly from Penberthy plated their 9th run. Starting pitcher Blake Fulghum was absolutely unhittable in his three innings of work and 42 pitch performance. The big lefty faced just 11 hitters striking out 6 and allowed just 1 hit. Junior Conner Lawhead notched his first varsity save of the year pitching the final two innings, striking out 1 and allowing only one hit.

(WP) Blake Fulghum 1-0, 3 IP, 0R, 1H, 6K,

Jared Lemke 2 IP, 6H, 4 R, 1K, 2BB,

(Save) Conner Lawhead 2 IP, 0R, 0H, 1K, 1BB

Jake Knecht 3-4, 3R, Ryan Somers 2B, Ryan Gilchrist 1-2, RBI, 2 BB, Mikey Smith 2B, William Chandler 1-3, RBI, Aaron Caditz 1-2, Anthony Beattie 1-4, RB.

Skyline 1-0