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Hurlers boost Medford in sweep By DON HUNT CENTRAL POINT - Chris Empio wasn't perfect, but he was pretty darn close. The Medford Mustangs pitcher limited Central Point to two hits and faced only two batters over the minimum Friday evening as he led the Mustangs to a 10-0 victory over the Comets in the opening game of an Area 4 baseball doubleheader. Tony Conklin nearly duplicated Empio's effort in Game 2 when he fired a one-hitter in a 3-1 Mustangs victory. Empio, a 6-foot-4, 202-pound right-hander, struck out five and walked only one in a game that was shortened to six innings by virtue of the 10-run rule. Medford moved to 6-6 in Area 4 play and 15-13 overall with the sweep. Empio was looked upon as the ace of the staff heading into the summer but - like the team in general - has had a roller-coaster season thus far. He hopes Friday's dominant performances by himself and Conklin will propel the Mustangs to a long winning streak. "I felt real confident coming out here tonight and kept throwing strikes the whole game," said Empio, who improved his record to 4-2. "My fastball was working well, and I stayed with it." Central Point's only hits were a pair of singles - by Frankie Drake in the first inning and Trent Kingsbury in the fifth. The Comets never got a runner beyond first base. Empio has grown an inch and put on 20 pounds since graduating from South Medford High in 2000. He played baseball at Albertson College in Caldwell, Idaho, this past spring, where he developed a split-fingered fastball that sinks just before it reaches the batter. The new pitch induces a lot of ground balls, and Friday's game was no exception as Empio recorded nine of his 18 outs on grounders. "I actually didn't throw it as much today, but it's a good pitch," Empio said. "It doesn't have the velocity that my normal fastball has and so it acts like a change-up. It's a good strikeout pitch." The Mustangs led just 2-0 until the fourth inning when they erupted for five runs on six hits. Matt Smith, Matt Skundrick and Travis Dunlap all had RBI singles in the inning, and Phil Ouellette stroked an RBI triple. Dunlap added a two-run homer over the right-field fence in the sixth inning. Mustangs catcher Rob Folsom had three hits and Ouellette, Conklin and Smith added two each for Medford. The Mustangs are trying to break out of a slump that dates back to last season, when they failed to qualify for the American Legion state tournament for the first time in 12 years. "I think we've got the talent to beat anybody," Ouellette said. "We haven't been hitting the ball like we're capable of, and we've been making too many mistakes. But there's a lot of season left. It's just a matter of settling down and playing our brand of baseball." Conklin struck out seven and walked only one in Game 2. But he lost his bid for a shutout - not to mention a no-hitter - when Chris Pettegrew hit a line shot that bounced off the glove of Medford second baseman Matt Skundrick, allowing David Sills to score from third base. Sills had earlier reached base on a walk. Medford scored the only two runs it would need in the top of second on an RBI double by Evan McArthur and Conklin's RBI single. The Mustangs added a run in the sixth on another RBI single by Conklin. Backstrom went 3-for-3 in the second game and scored twice. FIRST GAME Medford Mustangs ............................ 110 512 - 10 14 0 Central Point Comets ........................... 000 000 - 0 2 5 Empio and Folsom; Petersen and Maddocks. W - Empio (4-2). L - Petersen. 2B - Med: Ouellette, Conklin. 3B - Med: Ouellette. HR - Med: Dunlap (3). SECOND GAME Medford Mustangs ..............................020 001 0 - 3 8 1 Central Point Comets .........................000 100 0 - 1 1 1 Conklin and Folson; Pettegrew and Maddocks. W - Conklin (4-3). L - Pettegrew. 2B - Med: McArthur. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.