The middle of the Clark College baseball lineup combined for nine hits and 12 RBI as the Penguins beat Clackamas 16-4 in the first game of an NWAC South region doubleheader Sunday at Oregon City.
Clackamas won the second game 7-3 as Clark batters struck out 11 times.
In the opener, No. 6 hitter Nathaniel Affonso led the way by going 4 for 5 with two doubles and six RBI. No. 5 hitter Alec Cook was 3 for 5 with three RBI and scored four runs, and No. 7 Alex Rivera was 2 for 5 with a double and three RBI.
Camas High grad Sam Jones was the winning pitcher, going 5 2/3 innings. He allowed two runs on five hits with six strikeouts and four walks.
In Game 2, Clark scored all its runs in the seventh inning. Josh Berman drove in one run and Corey Wabinga drove in two with a double.
The Penguins (18-17, 8-12 South) have four games remaining in the regular season as they try to lock down a top four position to reach the postseason.
Five of the South’s seven teams are still alive to finish either third or fourth in the standings. Linn-Benton and Lane will be the top two teams from the South.
Clark’s final four games are against Lane at noon Friday in Eugene and 1 p.m. Saturday at Kindsfather Field in Vancouver.
Softball
Six losses in a row may have taken the Clark softball team out of postseason contention.
The Penguins (12-17, 10-4) dropped a doubleheader to Chemeketa on Sunday, losing 4-3 in eight innings and 10-1 in five innings. Clark is now in sixth place with four games to play including two against No. 2 ranked Southwestern Oregon on Tuesday in Vancouver.
Leadoff hitter Karley Yoshioka was 3 for 4 with a double and an RBI in the first game for Clark.
Chemeketa scored once in the seventh inning on two-out double, and then an error to tie the game. Two hits and an error produced the go-ahead run in the eighth.
Clark had the tying run at third base with one out but the game ended on a ground out and a strikeout.
