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Sweet 16: Dunlap, Skundrick help keep Mustangs on track with sweep of Falcons Mail Tribune / Andrew Mariman Medford Mustangs catcher Rob Folsom, bottom, looks for the ball following a collision at home plate with Brad Bailey of Klamath Falls in the second inning of Game 1 during Tuesday's doubleheader at Miles Field. Bailey was safe on the play, but the Mustangs went on to sweep the Falcons, 12-2 and 11-1. By DON HUNT Maybe it's a coincidence that the Medford Mustangs launched a 16-game winning streak at the same time Travis Dunlap returned from a broken hand and rejoined the lineup. More than likely, though, it's not. Dunlap blasted his eighth home run of the summer - a grand slam - and registered seven RBIs as the streaking Mustangs swept Klamath Falls in an Area 4 doubleheader at Miles Field on Tuesday night. The scores were 12-2 in six innings and 11-1 in five. The twin victories pushed the Mustangs' win streak to 16, moved their overall record to 29-13 and, more significantly, improved their Area 4 record to 10-6 as they seek to return to the American Legion state tournament after missing out a year ago. The Falcons, meanwhile, fell to 35-13 overall and 10-4 in Area 4 play. Despite missing 17 games with a broken bone in his right hand, Dunlap has eight home runs and 46 RBIs in 26 games. He leads the Mustangs in both categories. "Travis gives us a spark that we didn't have when he was out," said Matt Skundrick, who slugged a two-run homer of his own in Game 1 and was also the winning pitcher. "He's our playmaker. He hits the ball a ton." Phil Ouellette and Tony Conklin each drew walks and Rob Folsom doubled to set the table for Dunlap's grand slam in the first inning of Game 1. Shawn Backstrom then beat out an infield hit and, one batter later, Skundrick belted a two-run shot to left-center as the Mustangs galloped to a quick 6-0 lead. "The pitch was up and away but I threw the head of my bat at it and the ball went out of the park," Dunlap said of his bases-clearing clout. "The wind was blowing out and that definitely helped." By almost all accounts, Dunlap should have one more home run this season. A tape-measure shot estimated at 450 feet was taken away from him one night earlier in a victory over Central Point when the home plate umpire apparently lost sight of the ball and called it foul. "That was the longest ball I've ever hit in a game and so it was disappointing not to have it count," Dunlap said. "But we're winning and that's what really matters." While Dunlap's return to the lineup has given the Mustangs a huge power surge, the winning streak has resulted from stellar pitching and stingy defense as much as it has from an enhanced offense. Skundrick and Tony Conklin each pitched complete games Tuesday night and the Mustangs committed only one error in the twin bill. "The biggest part of our winning streak came when we were on the road for seven straight days last week," Skundrick said. "We got to know each other a little better and came together as a team." Skundrick held Klamath Falls to four hits, struck out seven and walked three in the opening game and came within a triple of hitting for the cycle. His home run in Game 1 was his sixth of the season and his third in as many games. Medford ended Game 1 in the sixth inning via the 10-run rule when it exploded for six runs on five hits, including RBI singles by Shawn Backstrom and Evan McArthur. In Game 2, Backstrom and Matt Smith each went 3-for-3 and Conklin fired a three-hitter to run his record to a team-best 7-3. Conklin is now 24-6 in his 21/2 seasons with the Mustangs and is closing in on Bobby Wolcott's team record of 27 victories. Phil Ouellette's streak of reaching base 12 straight times ended in the first inning of Game 1 when Falcons shortstop Brian Kinsman made a diving catch of a fly ball in shallow left field. FIRST GAME Klamath Falls Falcons .........................110 000 - 2 4 1 Medford Mustangs .............................600 006 - 12 12 1 Clark, G. Wagner (6) and Mortenson; Skundrick and Folsom. W - Skundrick (5-2). L - Clark. 2B - KF: Telle, Farley; M: Folsom 2, Skundrick. HR - M: Dunlap (8), Skundrick (6). SECOND GAME Klamath Falls Falcons........................... 000 01 - 1 3 1 Medford Mustangs ...............................015 05 - 11 14 0 James, Landrum (4), L. Wagner (5) and Mortenson; Conklin and Folsom. W - Conklin (7-3). L - James. 2B - M: Dunlap. 3B - M: Backstrom. Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.