WCL News Archive

07/10/2006

East starting pitcher DJ Lidyard

Wenatchee, Washington, July 10, 2006 -The WCCBL announced its starting pitchers for its inaugural All-Star game Tuesday, July 11. East head coach Ed Knaggs of Wenatchee chose his AppleSox ace DJ Lidyard of Lower Columbia College to start for the East squad. West head coach Dale Stebbins of Aloha picked Bellingham Bells ace Brett Armour of Mesa State College to start for the West. Lidyard leads the league in strikeouts with 42. Armour is 4-0 over 4 starts and has posted the league's second lowest ERA at 1.17 and is fourth in the league in strikeouts with 26.

The league also announced who will be participating in the Best of the West Home Run Derby to be held right before the All-Star game. Representing the West will be Aloha's Mark Samuelson of University of California, Riverside; Bend's Grant Desme of Cal Poly SLO and Kitsap's Brian Burmester of University of Iowa. Representing the East will be Spokane's Darin Holcomb of Gonzaga and Chase Powell of University of Portland, and Moses Lake's Bobby McCaffery of Wenatchee Valley College.

You can listen to the league's first All-Star game at www.kpq.com. Enjoy the voice of the AppleSox - Eric Granstrom - as he calls the action. The All-Star game is Tuesday, July 11 and it starts at 7:05 pm. Gates open at 3 pm.

Commissioner Jim Dietz announced the WCCBL's inaugural East and West teams on July 5 for its first All-Star game Tuesday, July 11 at 7:05 pm. The East team features prospects from the league leading Spokane RiverHawks, defending champion Wenatchee AppleSox, Kelowna Falcons and expansion Moses Lake Pirates and will be managed by 2005 WCCBL Coach of the Year Ed Knaggs of Wenatchee. The West team features all-stars from the Aloha Knights, Bellingham Bells, Bend Elks and Kitsap BlueJackets and will be managed by Dale Stebbins of Aloha. The All-Star game is being held at Paul Thomas Sr. Stadium in Wenatchee. Below are the league's All-Star teams as announced by Commissioner Dietz and as chosen Tuesday, July 4 by the WCCBL's field managers.

2006 WCCBL East All-Star Team

OUTFIELD
Brent Mertens (Western Oregon), Spokane RiverHawks
Greg Swertfager (Cal Poly SLO), Kelowna Falcons
Tyler McCallum (Washington State), Wenatchee AppleSox
Chris Bozo (Community Colleges of Spokane), Spokane RiverHawks

INFIELD
Chase Powell (University of Portland), Spokane RiverHawks
Marcus McKimmy (Columbia Basin College), Wenatchee AppleSox
Sawyer Carroll (Seminole State College), Kelowna Falcons
Darin Holcomb (Gonzaga), Spokane RiverHawks
Hawkins Gebbers (Biola University), Wenatchee AppleSox

CATCHER
Ryan Fobert (George Fox University), Moses Lake Pirates
Kyle Paul (Vernon College), Kelowna Falcons
Dustin Colclough (Gonzaga), Wenatchee AppleSox

PITCHER
DJ Lidyard (Lower Columbia College), Wenatchee AppleSox
Jeremy Hefner (Seminole State College), Spokane RiverHawks
Luke Farden (Community Colleges of Spokane), Spokane RiverHawks
Heath Taylor (Vernon College), Kelowna Falcons
Chad Hunter (Big Bend CC), Moses Lake Pirates
Tommy Milone (University of Southern California), Wenatchee AppleSox
Nick Haughian (University of Washington), Wenatchee AppleSox
Dale Reneau (Seminole State College), Moses Lake Pirates
Brian Gausman (New Mexico State), Kelowna Falcons

2006 WCCBL West All-Star Team

OUTFIELD
Brett Kaluza (University of Washington), Kitsap BlueJackets
Zach Borba (UNLV), Aloha Knights
Jake Rife (University of Washington), Bend Elks
Grant Desme (Cal Poly SLO), Bend Elks
Nick Novak (Phoenix College), Bellingham Bells

INFIELD
Mark Samuelson (University of California, Riverside), Aloha Knights
Joey Wong (Sprague High School), Bend Elks
Scott Hardinger (Cornell University), Bellingham Bells
Eric Sogard (Arizona State), Bend Elks
Ryan Selden (Riverside CC), Aloha Knights

CATCHER
Erik Ammon (Oregon State), Aloha Knights
Joe Southers (Phoenix College), Bellingham Bells

PITCHER
Brett Armour (Mesa State College), Bellingham Bells
Ross Humes (Washington State), Kitsap BlueJackets
Matt Duryea (Lane CC), Bend Elks
Jared Prince (Washington State), Aloha Knights
James Wallace (College of Southern Idaho), Aloha Knights
Brian Budrow (Oregon State), Bend Elks
Mike Tachell (Missouri Valley College), Kitsap BlueJackets
Brian Anderson (Midland College), Bellingham Bells
Marc Rzepczynski (University of California, Riverside), Aloha Knights

This Week in the WCCBL

Spokane (15-6, 4-2 last week): The first place Hawks took two critical series vs. two clubs biting at their heels. First Spokane delivered Wenatchee its first home series loss of the year as All-Star Luke Farden of Community Colleges of Spokane tossed a complete game in the Hawks 5-1 rubber match win. Spokane then took two of three at home vs. Aloha to extend their league lead to three games. Pitchers Jeremy Hefner of Seminole State College and A.J. Proszek teamed up to close out the Knights in the series finale as Proszek quelled an uprising and got the win in relief and Hefner closed the door by tossing the final two innings to earn the save in the Hawks 7-5 win. Hefner beat Wenatchee to start the week 3-1 and Proszek earned the save by tossing 2 1/3 of perfect relief. Spokane's offense was led by All-Star third baseman Darin Holcomb of Gonzaga. Darin was named co-Player of the Week as Holcomb went 9 for 19 with 8 RBI and he hit his league leading 4th homerun. The RiverHawks lead the league in hitting with a .280 batting average and in pitching with a league low 2.44 ERA. Spokane will be represented at the All-Star game by Farden, Hefner, Holcomb and Chris Bozo from Community Colleges of Spokane, Brent Mertens of Western Oregon and Chase Powell of University of Portland.

Aloha (12-9, 2-4 last week): Aloha lost both its road series at Bellingham and Spokane. The Knights used strong starting outings by frosh Eric Massingham of Cal Poly SLO and junior All-Star Marc Rzepcyznski to earn its lone wins vs. the Bells and Hawks. Massingham and Rob Summers of OSU combined to shutout Bellingham 3-0 salvaging the series finale for Aloha. Massingham gave up 4 hits over 8 innings and struck out 7. Rzepcyznski of University of California, Riverside (UCR) twirled a complete game in the Knights 6-1 win over Spokane. Rzepcyznski improved his league mark to 2-0 and lowered his ERA to 1.37. All-Star centerfielder Zach Borba of UNLV went 2 for 4 with 3 RBI in the team's Spokane victory. Aloha lost two heartbreakers blowing late leads as the team's bullpen and defense, its strengths to this point in the season, failed in tight games. The Knights will be represented at the All-Star game by Rzepczynski, Borba and Mark Samuelson of UCR, Ryan Selden of Riverside CC, Erik Ammon of Oregon State, James Wallace of College of Southern Idaho and Jared Prince of Washington State.

Wenatchee (12-9, 3-3 last week): The AppleSox lost its first home series of the year to first place Spokane. The Sox lone home win was of the comeback variety as Wenatchee scored 5 in the seventh to erase a 4-1 deficit on its way to a 6-4 win. All-Star infielder Hawkins Gebbers of Biola University went 3 for 3 in the Sox come from behind win. Gebbers is hitting a team leading .344. All-Star closer Nick Haughian of University of Washington picked up his league leading 6th save by tossing a perfect ninth. Wenatchee evened its week by beating Kelowna two out of three at Elks Stadium. The Sox won game two of the series 14-4 as Wenatchee exploded for 24 hits. All-Stars Tyler McCallum of Washington State and Marcus McKimmy of Columbia Basin College collected 4 hits as did infielder Sean Nicol of University of Portland. Right-hander Matt Fields of Gonzaga picked up the win as he threw 7 scoreless innings to improve his league mark to 2-1. Fields had a no-hitter going into the sixth. Wenatchee drew 1,524 for its July 3 fireworks night game with Spokane. The AppleSox will be represented at the All-Star game by Gebbers, Haughian, McCallum, McKimmy and Dustin Colclough of Gonzaga, Tommy Milone of USC and DJ Lidyard of Lower Columbia College.

Bend (12-9, 4-2 last week): Bend continued to play great baseball as the Elks won series both at home and the road. The Elks started the week by taking two of three from Kelowna at Vince Genna Stadium. Bend and Kelowna opened the series by playing a 14-inning thriller. The longest game this season in the WCCBL was won by the Elks 9-8. All-Star third baseman Eric Sogard of Arizona State was the hitting star going 4 for 5 with 3 RBI including the game-winning single in the bottom of the 14th. In Bend's series finale win vs. Kelowna, All-Star second baseman Joey Wong, a frosh-to be at Oregon State, went 3 for 4 and Eric Sogard's brother and Elks' starting pitcher Alex Sogard of Oregon State picked up the 10-5 win. Wong leads the league in hitting with a .429 average and has yet to make an error while turning in a season's worth of spectacular plays. The Elks finished the week by taking two of three on the road vs. Moses Lake. All-Star outfielder Grant Desme of Cal Poly SLO went 3 for 4 with a double, homer and 3 RBI in the Elks series finale 9-3 win over the Pirates. In the series opener, Desme went 2 for 4 with a triple and 2 RBI as the Elks held off Moses Lake 4-3. For the week, Desme went 10 for 26 with 6 runs and 9 RBI. All-Star closer Matt Duryea induced two ground outs with the tying run aboard to record his 5th save. Bend will be represented at the All-Star game by Eric Sogard, Wong, Desme, Duryea and Jake Rife of University of Washington and Brian Budrow of Oregon State.

Kelowna (9-12, 2-4 last week): The Falcons finished a grueling 9-game road trip in Bend early in the week and ended the week at home by beating Wenatchee 10-4 to salvage the final game of its series with the Sox. Kelowna's week started with a heartbreaking 14-inning road loss to Bend. Kelowna came back from a 7-1 deficit to the send the game into extras and scored a run in the 12th, but the Elks scored in their half and eventually won it 9-8 in the 14th. In game two of its Elks series and the first game of an Independence Day doubleheader, All-Star reliever Brian Gausman of New Mexico State was given the start and threw 6 1/3 solid innings to get the win. His All-Star teammate lefty Heath Taylor of Vernon College, normally a starter, switched roles closing the game for the save. In Kelowna's opening 14-4 home loss to Wenatchee, All-Star catcher Kyle Paul of Vernon College hit a grand slam homerun. In the Falcons series finale 10-4 win, Paul went 3 for 3 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI. Paul leads the Falcons in doubles with 5, HR with 2 and RBI with 16. Kelowna will be represented at the All-Star game by Gausman, Taylor, Paul and Sawyer Carroll of Seminole State College and Greg Swertfager of Cal Poly SLO.

Kitsap BlueJackets (9-12, 4-1): Kitsap made a move in the standings by winning four of five at home. WCCBL co-Player of the Week Ross Humes was the story as he was brilliant in two starts. The sophomore-to be from Washington State pitched 8 innings in the Jackets Independence Day 2-1 win over Moses Lake and then came back Sunday and pitched a two-hit home shutout vs. Bellingham as the BlueJackets took the series with a series finale 3-0 victory. Humes whitewash featured 10 strikeouts and after allowing a leadoff single, Ross retired 25 consecutive batters. The southpaw from Federal Way, Washington is 4-0 and leads the league in ERA at 0.24. Infielder Jamie Nilsen of Central Washington homered in Humes' 2-1 victory. In the BlueJackets series clinching 3-2 win over Moses Lake, Kyle Howe of Columbia Basin College turned in an excellent start tossing 8 innings to earn the win. Howe allowed 8 hits and one run while walking 2 and striking out 7. All-Star closer Mike Tachell earned his second save by tossing a scoreless ninth. Kitsap won its series opener with Bellingham in extra innings as the BlueJackets won it with a run in the 10th. Tachell earned the win in relief as the right-hander tossed 1 2/3 innings of scoreless ball and struck out 3. Kitsap drew an Independence Day crowd of 1,258. The BlueJackets will be represented at the All-Star game by Humes, Tachell and Brett Kaluza of University of Washington.

Bellingham Bells (8-13, 3-3): The Bells won its second consecutive home series by taking two of three from Aloha before losing a tough series at Kitsap. Bellingham started the week with a dramatic 4-3 win over the Knights. Down 3-1 with two outs and no one on in the bottom of the ninth, the Bells started a rally that would culminate in a walk-off two-run error giving Bellingham the series opening win. The next day, All-Star starter Brett Armour of Mesa State College tossed an Independence Day three-hit shutout as the Bells won 5-0. All-Star outfielder Nick Novak and catcher Joe Southers of Phoenix College led the offense as Novak laced a two-run double and Southers went 3 for 4. Armour is now 4-0 after 4 starts and has posted a 1.17 ERA while striking out 26. All-Star reliever Brian Anderson of Midland College collected the save in the Bells sole win over Kitsap as the Bells took the middle game 3-2. The Bells will be represented at the All-Star game by Armour, Novak, Southers, Anderson and Scott Hardinger of Cornell.

Moses Lake (7-14, 1-4): Moses Lake wrapped a rough 9-game road trip in Kitsap and finished the week back at the friendly confines of Larson Field vs. Bend. The Pirates dropped the final two games of its series with the BlueJackets after taking the opening game of the series 4-2. All-Star catcher Ryan Fobert of George Fox University went 3 for 3 with 2 RBI and All-Star reliever Dale Reneau pitched the ninth for his second save in the Pirates lone win at Kitsap. Fobert leads the Bucs in hitting with a .349 batting average. Over 9 appearances and 11 2/3 innings pitched, Reneau has posted a 0.77 ERA and struck out 14. After suffering its sixth one-run loss of the season in its home series opener with Bend, the Pirates scored one in the ninth to beat the Elks 3-2. Shortstop Brett Munster of University of California, Berkeley went 3 for 4 with 2 RBI and reliever Derek Shoemaker of Wenatchee Valley College threw 6 scoreless innings of relief to earn the win. Moses Lake dropped its series finale with Bend 9-3. Moses Lake leads the league in team field percentage as the Pirates are fielding at an impressive .974 clip. The Pirates will be represented at the All-Star game by Fobert, Reneau and starter Chad Hunter of Big Bend CC.

WCCBL announces inaugural East and West All-Star teams (July 5, 2006).
WCCBL season heats up. Spokane flying high (July 3, 2006)
Former MLB star John Olerud to be Honored at inaugural WCCBL Best of the West All-Star banquet (June 26, 2006).
Recap of opening weekend and season previews of all eight WCCBL teams (June 19, 2006).
WCCBL kicks-off second season (June 7, 2006).
WCCBL announces All-Star game and post-season plans (March 15, 2006).

The WCCBL is dedicated to player development, player exposure and to providing affordable summer entertainment to its member communities.

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