A perfect 10. Through 10 Valley Oak League games, the Oakdale Mustangs varsity baseball team is 10-0 following a pair of wins against Sierra. On Tuesday, April 25 the team traveled to Manteca and topped defeat Sierra 11-0 and came back with a 15-3 lopsided home win on Thursday, April 27.
It was a hits parade for Oakdale (18-4, 10-0) in game one as they tallied 11 hits and 11 RBI. Senior catcher Bryce Kirk went 3-for-4 at the plate as he smashed a home run and also got a double in the game, driving in two. Kirk leads the Valley Oak League in home runs with four on the season.
Senior first baseman Nick Moore connected on two hits and drove in a pair of RBI in the shutout victory. Seniors Blake Whiting and Jordon Williams also added two RBI each for the Mustangs.
On the hill for Oakdale was Vito Rodin, who pitched five innings and gave up only two hits in the win. Rodin earned his fifth win of the season and holds an impressive 0.69 ERA.
Two days later the Mustangs dominated at home scoring six of their 15 runs in the first inning. Nick Moore and Cullen Bearden each went yard, crushing home runs in the victory for Oakdale. Moore’s one out three run home run to left field set the tone early and the team never let up. Blake Maddock went 3-for-3 on the day and brought in three runs.
Blake Whiting started the game and struck out five Sierra batters in three and two-thirds innings of work. Whiting holds an astonishing 0.49 era in 43 innings of work and has a team high six wins.
Oakdale traveled to Central Catholic (5-15, 2-7) on Tuesday, May 2 to take on the Raiders. The game was held following The Leader’s press time. The Mustangs host Central Catholic on Thursday, May 4 with first pitch scheduled for 4 p.m.
JUNIOR VARSITY
A pair of competitive games with the Timberwolves saw the two teams split their Valley Oak League series. On Tuesday, the Timberwolves edged the Mustangs 2-1 at Sierra. Tied at one entering the bottom of the seventh inning, Sierra walked off against the JV boys following a game winning single. At home later in the week, the Mustangs returned the favor with a walk off of their own. Preston Gookin’s single in the bottom of the eighth earned Oakdale the win.
FRESHMEN
A busy week saw the freshman team on the field four times. The boys lost to Manteca 5-3 and lost to Kimball 8-2. However the week ended on a high note with a pair of victories, 4-3 over East Union and 7-0 over Sierra. In the team’s win over East Union, pitcher Diego Valdez earned the win and Angel Medina came in for the save. Hitting well for Oakdale were Dom McDonald, Jackson Ruvalcaba and Pedro Acosta.
“It was nice to see our guys respond to adversity that occurred early in the week later on in the week,” said Coach Joey Machado.
Against Sierra, Austin Meeks was the winning pitcher. It was Jaiden Williams who sparked the four-run fifth inning when he delivered a two run triple. This week Oakdale is on the road for a trio of games. They were scheduled to take on Kimball on Monday, following The Leader’s press time. On Wednesday the boys head to Modesto to play Central Catholic and wrap up the week on Friday at East Union.
