BOURBON – The Triton High School baseball team didn’t start the 2014 season the way it would have liked Wednesday night. Losing 13-0 in five innings at home to South Bend Riley (1-0), the Trojans (0-1) were a victim of a combined perfect game. Riley starting pitcher Trevor Creager got the win with three innings pitched, striking out six of the nine Trojans he faced, while reliever Josh Thomas pitched the final two innings, striking out five of six batters. In all, Triton had 15 batters come to the plate, with 11 striking out and none reaching base. “We just flat out came out and didn’t hit the ball,” Triton coach Rodney Younis said. “I think we’re going to be a good hitting team. I can’t put my finger on it. It’s just that it’s the first game and maybe there were some jitters with the kids. Obviously when you get down, then you start to question some things within yourself. We talked about how this is a mental sport and you have to fight through those situations.” Triton pitcher Cole Creighbaum surrendered just one run in the first inning, but things really got away in the second. In the second, Riley had its first four batters reach base, extending its lead to 4-0 before Thomas cranked a three-run homer over the left-center fence, pushing the lead to 7-0. Riley added another run in the third, then five more in the fifth, which turned out to the be final inning due to the 10-run rule. Dealing with cold weather and spring break, the game was Triton’s first live action of the year, and Younis believes that contributed to the lopsided score. “With the crazy spring we’ve had, this was kind of like a scrimmage for us,” he said. “It was our first game and it obviously looked like it. “At the plate, we just need to see some more live pitching,” he added. “We’ll correct some things and we’ll get better.” Triton doesn’t have much time to dwell on the loss as it hosts Oregon-Davis tonight. “Everyday we want to get better,” Younis said. “It doesn’t matter who we’re playing. We’re going to put this behind and move forward.”
SOUTH BEND RILEY 13, TRITON 0 (5 innings) R 161 05 – 13 11 0 T 000 00 – 0 0 3 Riley – Trevor Creager (W, 3IP, 0R, 0H, 6K, 0BB), Josh Thomas (4, 2IP, 0R, 0H, 5K, 0BB) and Gabe Douglass. Triton – Cole Creighbaum (L, 2-1/3IP, 8R, 6ER, 7H, 2K, 1BB, 1HB, 1HR), Ben Perkins (3, 2-2/3IP, 5R, 4ER, 4H, 1K, 3BB, 1HB) and Grant Stichter. 2B – Hunter Knapp (R) 2, Bryce Wieczorek (R). HR – Thomas (R). Records: Riley 1-0, Triton 0-1.
