Dinos win double-header against Hawks

By Sierra Trujillo

With two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning, the Carbon High School baseball team was tied with North Sanpete High School with six runs apiece. A flyout and a line drive out left the game up to senior Gavin Robinett who approached the plate 0-for-3 in the game thus far.
With one strike against him, Robinett blasted a home run down the left field line for a walk-off win in favor of the Dinos, and his first home run of the season.
“Some days that’s the way it happens,” said head coach Jeff Cisneros. “I’d rather take a walk-off than not get it. I’m happy for Gavin that he got into one and hit it.”
The Dinos had fallen behind early in the game, with the Hawks of North Sanpete scoring two runs in the first and one in the second. The Dinos answered with one run of their own in the second inning, with senior Kameron Gunter scoring on an error, but the Hawks tacked on another run in the top of the fourth,
It wasn’t until the fourth inning that the Dinos grabbed the lead, with a two-RBI triple by sophomore Ty Anderson. The Dinos scored five runs total in the inning, with sophomore Collin Lewis also hitting an RBI double. The Dinos held the two-run lead until the sixth inning, when the Hawks tied the game.
“Anytime you can win, some wins are going to be ugly and we have to take ugly wins too, but we need to be getting better when we get wins and I didn’t think we got better today,” explained Cisneros, disappointed that the game had to come down to a walk-off.
Junior Zac Bradley started the game on the mound for the Dinos and pitched 5.2 innings, allowing six runs, only one earned, while striking out six and walking two. Senior Chase Morgan entered the game for the Dinos with two outs in the sixth inning, and threw a scoreless 1.1 innings.
Robinett’s homer wasn’t the only long ball that led to a win for the Dinos, as two home runs in the second game of the doubleheader earned the Dinos another victory over the Hawks.
In the first inning, senior Jayden Flemett gave the Dinos a quick lead with a two-run home run. After a scoreless second, junior Cody Lowe hit a two-run home run as well, to increase the Dinos’ lead to four runs.
“We’re not a team that I’m going to rely on hitting home runs, but if we swing the bats the way we’re capable of doing we will hit a few and so it was nice to see some guys hit a couple to the opposite field and a few other things… I mean, yeah, I’ll take them when they come, but it’s not something we want to live and die with,” said Cisneros.
The Dinos went back to what they’re used to, manufacturing runs, in the fourth inning, with Gunter hitting an RBI triple, Lewis hitting an RBI double, and Anderson hitting an RBI double, while senior Joshua Barlow scored on a wild pitch to score a total four runs.
The Hawks managed two runs in the sixth inning off of Lowe, who started the game for the Dinos, but Carbon answered back with a run of their own on a bases loaded walk.
Lowe went back to the mound for the seventh inning, but as the wind began to swirl across the field and raindrops began to fall, he was replaced by junior Jaxon Leonard after earning two outs. Leonard gave up one hit, but struck out the final batter for the Dinos’ second win of the day, a 9-5 victory.
Lowe pitched 6.2 innings, allowing five runs, four earned, and struck out six while walking three.
Lowe went 1-for-3 at the plate with a home run and two RBI and Flemett went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBI.
The Dinos will face North Sanpete on the road for the final game of the series on Friday, with hopes of a sweep. Carbon sits in first place in Region 12 standings after winning the two games with a 6-2 region record. The Dinos are just ahead of Canyon View High School, who is 4-2 in region so far this season. Carbon will host Canyon View High School for a doubleheader on Tuesday.
“If we go get a win on Friday and take all three from [North] Sanpete, then just take two out of three from Canyon View, there’s no way they can win the region, so that’s the plan right now,” explained Cisneros.