By Jeremy McDonald

jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com

ALBANY, Ore.–  The Linn-Benton Community College baseball team picked up from where they left off from their 30-9 Spring season with a four-game sweep of Chemeketa Community College in both teams’ opening weekend of the season.

Hitting was there.  The Roadrunnners produced 27 runs while their defense held the Storm to three as LBCC kicks-off their 2022 campaign.

“I think (we) just need to clean up the little things, but overall as a staff we have a lot of talent.  A lot of guys work hard and I think we’re just going to keep getting better and better from here on out,” Sprague’s Michael Soper said, who had a double in the first game.

Soper played in three of the four games this weekend, playing at third base for Linn-Benton.  Central’s Emiliano Alacron, who had two doubles and 2RBI’s in the second game of the series on Saturday, took over third base duties in Game 4 as the Roadrunners scored five of their six runs in Game 4’s 6-0 win in the fourth and fifth-innings Sunday afternoon.

“It was really good to get out and see what everyone  can do.  We all just competed and we were all ready to compete as a team.  It was fun,” Alacron said.  “It’s fun to see what everyone can do.”

Now that the opening series are done and over with, it’s off to the next.  LBCC travels to Roseburg to play Spokane and Umpqua Community Colleges on March 5 and 6 at Champion Car Wash Field in a unique pair of weekends against some tough teams from the NWAC in non-league action.

“Practice is going to be important because we got them and Everett and Yakima next.  I think it’s going to be very competitive, we need to clean up a couple of things and go compete,” Panter-grad Ruben Cedillo said, who had a triple in the first game and went 1-for-2 in Game 2.

“Little things like baserunning  and stuff like that. But overall, everyone’s ready to compete and whoever’s on the bench or in the game, we’re going to compete.  Being smart and the little things like baserunning stuff, the rest will take care of itself,” adds Alacron.

The Roadrunners travel to Yakima, Washington on March 12 and 13 to play Everett and Yakima.  The next home game for Linn-Benton will be March 19 when they have a doubleheader against the Corban JV team at Linn-Benton Community College.

Photos By Jeremy McDonald