The hits didn’t come when Oakdale needed them most in back-to-back losses for the Oakdale Baseball Association’s 11-12 Cal Ripken All Stars in state tournament action at James Polk Middle School in Fresno this past week.The team slipped in 7-3 form to Clovis in the tournament opener, despite five innings of sharp pitching from Blake Whiting. The team was down just 3-2 in the fifth, but surrendered late scores and ultimately the contest.Whiting smashed an RBI double in the loss while Dalton Stewart connected on a key single and Bradford Aquino grabbed a base hit and walk.The team fell, 7-5 to Hanford after a 4-2 lead turned sour in the fifth. With two outs and the bases clear, Hanford landed base runners on an error and a walk before a home run would give them the lead.Stewart knocked in the tying run with a huge hit, only to watch Hanford launch a game-winning walk-off home run in the bottom of the frame.It was an anticlimactic end to a sharp season for the local all stars that included a Cal Ripken District 1 title.“We were competitive with both teams, but we just could not hit that well in this tournament,” Oakdale coach Ron Helms said. “The kids were pretty upset but we played 16 regular season games and then an extra 18, so they got another season of baseball in and they had a good time.”
Oakdale Baseball All Stars Go 0-2 In State Tournament
