Twins erupt for 23 runs in win

It may not have been the Fourth of July, but the Lewis-Clark Twins Legion baseball team provided plenty of fireworks of their own Friday night.

Lewis-Clark exploded for 18 hits in a 23-5 beatdown of the Northwest Naturals of Bellevue, Wash., during the Palouse Summer Series at Harris Field.

"The two games we played in this tournament, our bats have been alive," Twins coach Kevin Maurer said. "They put on a special showing in front of their fans. We had six doubles today to go along with a triple and a home run, so when guys are getting extra-base hits like that, it means we're squaring up the ball and finding gaps."

Infielder Riley Way sparked Lewis-Clark (16-5) with four hits on the day, including three doubles. Colton Olson also added a trio of base knocks, while Chris Powell and Luke White both went deep in the mercy-rule win.

"Riley's been working on his swing and taking some extra hacks, and today it finally showed in the batter's box," Maurer said. "He hit a ball in the gap and up the middle, he spread it all around. Coming from our leadoff man, that triggers the rest of the guys in the lineup."

The Twins skipper said starting pitcher Cooper Lund initially struggled to find the zone, but he was able to escape two bases-loaded jams during his outing.

"His pitch count ran a litle high, so we had to take him out in the fourth," Maurer said. "But he was able to manage those tight situations and get out of them."

The Twins almost ended the game in the fifth with an 11-2 lead, but the Naturals scored three runs to claw back into contention. The following inning, Lewis-Clark posted an 11-run frame to secure the mercy-rule win.

"We got an extra opportunity to bat, and our guys love to swing it," Maurer said. "They definitely took advantage of it."

The Twins continue tournament play today with a pair of afternoon games. Lewis-Clark battles the Washington Rush of Evertee in a 4 p.m. meeting before taking on the Kalispell Lakers of Montana in the 7 p.m. nightcap.

"We saw a little bit of the Rush today, and it looks like they're a pretty good team that can swing it," Maurer said.

Lewis-Clark 060 50(11)-23 18 2

Northwest 002 030-5 10 3

Cooper Lund, Jaden Phillips (4), Nate Savolainen (6) and Chase Adkison. Simmons, Brewster (4), Wiebki (6) and Shaw.

Lewis-Clark hits - Riley Way 4 (3-2B), Alex Light 2, Jaden Phillips, Luke White (HR), Chase Adkison 2 (2B), Danny Robinson 2, Chris Powell 2 (3B, HR), Ryder Schultz (2B), Colt Olson 3 (2B).

Northwest hits - Marenzo 2, Hirose (2B), Keller 3 (2B), Michaels 2, Collins, Barison.