Hermiston relief pitcher Piper Roberts pitches to a Pendleton batter on March 19, 2024, at Steve Cary Field.

PENDLETON — Hermiston and Pendleton renewed their rivalry Tuesday, March 19, and the Bucks came away with a 20-10 victory at Steve Cary Field with a little help from Reese Furstenberg.

Furstenberg hit two home runs, drove in four runs, and pitched for the win, striking out five.

“A great day for Reese, that’s for sure,” Pendleton coach Tim Cary said. “She has been our workhorse for us all year, so far.”

The Bulldogs came out in the first inning and put four runs on the board, all coming with two outs. A double by Kenley Venoy pushed the first runs across the plate, and Venoy scored on a single by Jordyn McGloin.

Mika Cherry followed with a two-run double as Hermiston took a 4-0 lead.

“Hermiston is a very good hitting team,” Cary said. “They lack a little in pitching, but they swing the bats well. They kept the pressure on us.”

Pendleton got two runs back in the bottom half of the inning as Avery Quaempts and Furstenberg hit back-to-back solo home runs, and the Bucks pulled with 4-3 after two innings as Josie Jenness drove in a run.

Furstenberg faced just four Bulldogs in the third inning, while the Bucks went crazy with eight runs on four hits, including doubles by Melanie Boatman and Quaempts. They sent 14 batters to the plate and scored three runs on errors to take an 11-4 lead.

Hermiston scored twice in the fourth to make it 11-6, but the Bucks went back to work in the bottom of the inning, scoring eight more runs to pull away for a 19-6 lead.

In the midst of the flurry of runs, Furstenberg hit a two-run homer, followed by Avery Krigbaum with a solo shot to center field.

The never-say-die Bulldogs came back with four runs in the top of the fifth, highlighted by a two-run double by Sydney Stocker.

Pendleton scored one run in the bottom of the fifth on a triple by Quaempts to invoke the 10-run rule.

“No matter how many runs we put on the board, it wasn’t enough,” Cary said. “We had to face some tough situations, especially being down four to start the game. We need to face those situations.”

UMATILLA 18, IRRIGON 1 — The Vikings scored 17 runs in the second inning to run away with a home win over the Knights.

“I wasn’t happy with our first week of games,” Umatilla coach Erick Olson said. “I challenged the team yesterday to take ownership of our season, and we played with a lot more pride today. I was thrilled with our effort.”

After a 1-1 game after the first inning, Umatilla sent 21 batters to the plate in the second inning. Highlights included a three-run double by Maddisyn Rico, and a two-run triple by Haidyn Thompson. The Vikings also scored twice on wild pitches.

Kaylonni Schaefer, Thompson and Sara Wilson all had two hits for Umatilla, while Meghan Owens iced up the win, throwing a two-hitter with two strikeouts and four walks.

Megan Player and Maricela Luna each had a hit for the Knights.

“That Irrigon team is making tremendous improvements and they worked really hard from the first pitch to the last. They got better today.”

HEPPNER 17, RIVERSIDE 1 — Heppner scored 11 runs in the second inning en route to a road win over the Pirates.

Heppner scored four runs in the top of the first, hung 11 runs on the board in the second, and finished with two more runs in the third for good measure.

Riverside looked to score in the bottom of the third, loading the bases with three walks, but the Mustangs turned a double play on a hit by Elaina Salgado to end the threat.

Maya Payne threw a no-hitter for the Mustangs, striking out three and walking four.

At the plate, Ava Gerry went 4-for-4 with a triple and three RBIs, while Payne, Hadlie Nation and Morgan Cutsforth hit doubles.

Baseball

WALLA WALLA 6, HERMISTON 2 — The Bulldogs opened Mid-Columbia Conference play with a loss to the Blue Devils at Murr Sports Park.

Tyler Garner threw a gem for Wa-Hi, throwing a one-hitter over five innings with three strikeouts and no walks.

Wa-Hi scored three runs in the first and three in the fifth for a 6-0 lead.

Hermiston put two runs on the board in the top of the sixth as Evan Hays hit a single to center field that scored Camden Venoy and Tanner McKoy.

LA GRANDE 15, MCLOUGHLIN 6 — The Tigers jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the first inning and cruised to a home win over the Pioneers.

La Grande added two runs in the second and five in the third for a 12-1 lead.

Mac-Hi scored one run in the third and five in the fifth, but could not catch the Tigers.

In the fifth, Dallen Duncan drove in a run with a single, and the Pioneers (3-2) scored the next four runs on passed balls.

Adrian Camarena went 2-for-4 for Mac-Hi, while Duncan, Cooper Yensen and Marco Hernandez hit singles.

Five La Grande pitchers combined for 13 strikeouts and four walks.

STANFIELD 6, PILOT ROCK 4 — Noah Morton and Dom Curiel combined on a three-hitter with six strikeouts to help the Tigers to a road win over the Rockets.

Each team scored twice in the first inning, and the Rockets took a 3-2 lead in the second on a sacrifice fly by Krister Litfin.

Stanfield got the run back in the third on a fielder’s choice by Kobe Harwood, then scored three runs in the top of the fourth to take the lead for good.

The Tigers’ first run in the fourth came off an error, and a balk by Tracen Hamby put another across the plate. The final run came off a single by Curiel.

Connor Logan and Joe Crawford hit doubles for the Tigers, while Curiel drove in two runs.

Hamby hit two singles for the Rockets, while James Lunzmann had one.

IRRIGON 7, UMATILLA 0 — Julian Gomez threw a five-hitter with 12 strikeouts and no walks to help the Knights to a road win over the Vikings.

Xander Olmin went 3-for-4 for the Knights, while freshman Bennette Atkins went 2-for-3 with an RBI. Colton Thompson, Brock Locey, Brayden Locey and Kodi Maris also drove in runs.

The Umatilla pitching staff of RJ Estrada, Carter Monahan and Davis Raymond combined for eight strikeouts, while David Garcia went 2-for-3 with a triple.

Girls tennis

PENDLETON 6, ONTARIO 2 — The Bucks swept the doubles and split the singles as they beat the Tigers on the road.

The No. 1 doubles team of Ashtyn Larson and Josie Nelson made quick work of Ogaly Santiago and Erika Perez, 6-0, 6-1, while Sara Airoldi and Adrienne Damianew beat Daniela Lopez and Abril Gomez 6-1, 6-2 at No. 2.

Tori Estrada and Ellie Monkman rallied to win the No. 3 match with a 4-6, 6-1, 12-10 victory over Mariah Luna and Nathania Sencion, and Ashley Sieders and Hannah Morioka finished the sweep with a 6-4, 6-2 will over Gissel Alejandro and Guadalupe Ramirez.

In singles, Pendleton’s Lilly Noble beat Ruby Rocha 6-1, 7-5 in the No. 3 match, while Noemi Alvarez-Barroso beat Carla Lopez 6-0, 6-0 at No. 4.