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65 °F Forecast | Road Cams Sunday, September 12, 2004 Today's News | Classifieds | Autos | Homes | Jobs | Tempo | Health | Community | Home Delivery SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics Tempo AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map SPECIAL SECTIONS Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Prime Times Wellness Connection Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Wedding Guide Rogue Valley's Finest EXTRA Newspaper in Education Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People MARKETPLACE Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Classifieds Place an ad eSouthernOregon Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar CUSTOMER SERVICE Frequent Questions Advertising Information Home Delivery Employment Contact Us Media Kit Network Affiliate Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Email Story to a Friend August 8, 2004 Salem hands Mustangs first loss Medford to still play in championship game today at 4:30 p.m. By DON HUNT Mail Tribune GRANTS PASS — The Salem Withnell Dodgers cooled off the Medford Mustangs at the American Legion State Baseball Tournament Saturday night, but the Mustangs remain in the hunt for the championship. Crafty left-hander Josh Forgue scattered 10 hits over 7 2/3 innings and cleanup hitter Erik Ammon went 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs as the Dodgers cruised to an 8-4 victory, handing the Mustangs their first loss in the double-elimination tournament at All-Sports Park. Salem will meet McMinnville at 1 p.m. today, with the winner of that game challening Medford at 4:30 p.m. for the championship. The Mustangs, now 33-14, had won five straight games in the postseason, including three in the state tournament, prior to Saturday’s setback. Advertisement "We’ve been playing at a real high level the past three days but today we came out a little flat," said Medford catcher Rob Folsom, who cracked a double and a home run in the loss. "It wasn’t a game we had to win and mentally we kind of lost our edge. "But we’ll be fired up for the championship game." Medford was in the same situation two years ago when it lost its fourth game of the tournament to Lakeridge, then bounced back the next day to beat Eugene for the title. "You can take a couple of routes to get it done and we’re taking the same route as two years ago," Medford manager Sandee Kensinger said. Saturday’s contest started out as a pitcher’s duel between Forgue and Medford right-hander Tim Holtz. Each team had just one hit and no runs through three innings, but the Dodgers tagged Holtz for three runs on four hits in the fourth. Ammon initiated the uprising with a single to center, and Robby Newbill followed one out later with a bunt single. Holtz got the next batter to fly out, but Casey Griffen got the Dodgers on the board with an RBI single and No. 9 hitter Aaron Haugen followed with a two-run double. The Mustangs cut their deficit to 3-1 in the top of the fifth on Brenton Ferguson’s RBI single, but Salem came back with two runs in the bottom of the inning to push its advantage to 5-1. Folsom crushed a solo homer over the left-field wall in the top of the sixth, his 11th of the season, but the Dodgers essentially put the game out of reach with three runs in their next turn at bat to go ahead 8-2. Forgue, a 6-foot-2, 175-pound senior-to-be at Sprague High School, used a split-fingered fastball and a pull-the-string change-up to keep the Mustang batters off balance much of the way. After giving up a single and a walk to start the game, he retired 12 straight batters before Charles Behnke singled with one out in the fifth. "He threw a lot of change-ups and we took a long time to adjust," Folsom said. "Give him credit — he’s a good pitcher." The Mustangs had a chance for a big inning in the fifth, but after Behnke’s one-out single, Salem shortstop Joey Wong gunned him down at the plate after Logan Boyd had doubled to left. Ferguson followed with a single that scored Boyd, but Forgue escaped further trouble when he got Kyle Williamson to fly out to right to end the inning. "Their defense played tough," Kensinger said. "They made the routine plays and a couple of others that were beyond routine." Medford finally chased Forgue in the eighth after a Folsom double, a Chad Hegdahl single and Abe Eubank’s sacrifice fly cut Salem’s lead to 8-4. But Rocky Gale pitched 1 1/3 innings of hitless relief to keep the Dodgers in control. Griffen had two hits and two runs to augment Ammon’s big night at the plate for Salem, while Boyd and Ferguson each had a double and a single for Medford. Medford....000 011 110 — 4 10 3 Salem......000 323 00 — 8 10 1 Holtz, Imhausen (6) and Folsom; Forgue, Gale (8) and Ammon. W — Forgue. L — Holtz (3-3). 2B — M: Boyd, Ferguson, Folsom; S: Haugen. HR — M: Folsom (11). Reach reporter Don Hunt at 776-4469, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2004 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions Website Feedback ADVERTISERS A D V E R T I S E R S SPECIAL SECTIONS Auto Finder Job Finder Home Finder Joy Magazine Homelife Magazine Tempo Readers' Choice Real Estate Showcase Since We Asked Outdoor Journal Moving to Southern Oregon? Volunteer Opportunities