Teammates wait to congratulate Fair Oaks center fielder Brion Casper (22) after Casper hit a first inning home run in Post 383's American Legion game against West Sacramento. Casper's blast tied the game up at 2-2. Photo by Joe Blenkle
Fair Oaks team stages late-inning rally for win
By Joe Blenkle/Sports Editor
(This article originally appeared in the July 3, 1991 edition of The Orangevale News)
    Despite trailing for most of its game against West Sacramento on June 26, the Fair Oaks Post 383 American Legion baseball team did what good teams are supposed to do. Down 7-2 in the late innings, Fair Oaks came back for an 8-7 win to up its record to 14-2 on the year.
    West Sacramento jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning off Fair Oaks starter Paul Dosher. With one out, third baseman Mike Reinhardt hit a ground ball to shortstop that was booted allowing him to reach base safely.
    Center fielder David Corriea then hit what should have been a double play ball, with shortstop Brent Massoth fielding the hit and stepping on second for the force of Reinhardt. The throw to first was low, however, and Fair Oaks first baseman Chris Borcich dropped the ball, allowing Corriera to reach first safely.
    West Sacramento first baseman Josh Kirtlan then tripled to center field to score Corriea, and a wild pitch with the next batter at the plate allowed Kirtlan to come in and score the second run of the inning.
American Legion - Post 383
Date Opponent Score
6/1 Charles Eggen W, 4-0
6-1 Charles Eggen L, 8-4
6-2 Charles Eggen W, 7-6
6-4 @ Post 61 W, 12-11
6-8 Roseville W, 10-7
6-8 Roseville W, 4-3
6-9 Roseville W, 18-6
6-12 Auburn W, 8-4
6-15 El Dorado W, 8-3
6-15 El Dorado W, 6-3
6-16 El Dorado L, 11-8
6-19 Elk Grove W, 8-6
6-22 Haggin Grant W, 15-1
6-22 Haggin Grant W, 10-9
6-23 Haggin Grant W, 17-10
6-26 W. Sacramento W, 8-7
6-29 Yolo-Post 77 L, 7-2
6-29 Yolo-Post 77 L, 4-3
OVERALL: 14-4    LEAGUE: 14-4
    Fair Oaks quickly tied the game up in the bottom of the first inning as third baseman Eric McDowell got a one out hit past a diving West Sacramento shortstop. McDowell was forced at second as Massoth hit a grounder to shortstop, but Massoth beat the throw to first to keep a runner on base for Fair Oaks. Center fielder Brion Casper then belted a home run over the left center field fence to tie the game at 2-2.
    West Sacramento went back in the lead in the top of the third inning, scoring three times for a 5-2 advantage. Mark Haley replaced Dosher as Post 383's pitcher, but Haley immediately ran into problems as the first batter he faced reached base on an error. West Sacramento's second baseman Joe Pitts then hit a ground ball to third. The throw to first got by Alan Coursey who had just come in the game, and Pitts went to second on the error.
    Reinhardt then got a hit to center field, with Pitts going to third. The next batter struck out, but then Kirtlan hit a ball to right that bounced over the fence for a ground rule double scoring both Pitts and Reinhardt.
    After an intentional walk to Jason Kirtlan, shortstop Greg Reinhardt got a hit to left to score Josh Kirtlan, making it a 5-2 game. The hit prompted another series of Fair Oaks position changes as Haley returned to left field, Borcich went back to first, and Tim Fuhrman cam in to do the pitching.
    Fuhrman retired the side to get out of the inning with no further damage being done. West Sacramento added to its lead in the top of the fifth, however, as two more runs scored to make it a 7-2 game.
    Brett Rapozo replaced Fuhrman on the mound, giving up three consecutive hits to allow West Sacramento its two runs. Fair Oaks got its first out of the inning on the third hit as Greg Reinhardt tried stretching his single into a double. Rapozo gave up a walk and two more hits before a West Sacramento runner was picked off second base for the second out, and Pitts flew to left field for the third and final out of the inning.
    In the bottom of the fifth, Fair Oaks got back in the game as Post 383 scored four times to cut the deficit to one run at 7-6. Trace Coquillette led off with a ground ball to third that was booted allowing him to safely reach first base. McDowell, the next batter, took a pitch square in the back to get on base, and then Massoth walked to load the bases for Fair Oaks.
    Casper then hit a grounder to West Sacramento's shortstop Greg Reinhardt. Reinhardt threw the ball to Pitts at second, but Pitts missed catching the ball. Coquillette scored and the bases were still loaded. With Dale Natividad at the plate, West Sacramento's catcher Jason Kirtlan pegged the ball to third trying to catch McDowell off the bag. His throw went into left field, however, and McDowell scored, with Massoth taking third and Casper going to second.
    Haley followed with a hit to right center field, scoring both Massoth and Casper, making it a 7-6 game. Mike McDowell entered the game in the top of the sixth inning to do the pitching for Fair Oaks. Despite giving up a hit and two walks to load the bases, McDowell got out of the inning without any runs scoring.
    Fair Oaks tied the game up at 7-7 in the bottom of the inning as Coquillette got a one out double to right field to start things off. With Eric McDowell at the plate, a passed ball moved Coquillette to third. McDowell hit a one-hop shot off West Sacramento first baseman Josh Kirtlan's chest, but Kirtlan recovered in time to tag McDowell as he went by, with Coquillette holding at third.
    Massoth was the next batter and he lined a shot down the third base line to score Coquillette with the tying run.
    West Sacramento managed only one hit in the top of the seventh, setting up Fair Oaks to win the game in the bottom of the inning. Natividad led off with a hit to left center field. He was moved to second on a bunt by Haley that was fielded by the pitcher, with the throw going to first for the out. Chris Borcich then drew an intentional walk, and Matt Borcich was hit by a pitch to load the bases with one out.
    Mike McDowell turned into the hero of the game as he came to the plate and lined the ball to right field for a hit, scoring Natividad from third with the winning run. Massoth, Casper, Haley and Natividad each had two hits for Fair Oaks, accounting for eight of Post 383's 10 hits in the game.
    Post 383 hosted Yolo in a doubleheader on Saturday, losing both games to the Post 77 team. Yolo defeated Fair Oaks 7-2 in the first game, and came up with a narrow 4-3 win in the second game.
    The two losses dropped Post 383's record on the year to 14-4, breaking a five-game winning streak by Fair Oaks. Fair Oaks plays Kennedy-Valley at Land Park Field No. 1 today at 5 p.m. Saturday, July 6, the team hosts Citrus Heights at Bella Vista High School in a doubleheader scheduled for an 11 a.m. start. Sunday, the two teams face each other in a single game at San Juan High School, also scheduled for an 11 a.m. starting time.
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