With city championship on the line, Grant edges Wells on perfect day for baseball

“This was like a playoff game. The atmosphere was great. ... There’s no bad blood, just two good teams going at it.”

Grant sophomore Grant Snidow gestures toward the Generals’ dugout after hitting a sixth-inning triple during the team’s 3-0 win at Wells. / Dan Brood

PORTLAND — The setting seemed to be nothing short of perfect.

It was a cloudy but comfortable day.

There was an old-school baseball field with finely trimmed grass and a scenic view beyond the outfield fence, all located right across the street from a quaint neighborhood.

Fans of each team filled the stands, with even more people sitting in folding chairs on top of a hill behind the first-base dugout.

As for the game itself, it was big. The two squads, the Grant and Wells high school baseball teams, friendly rivals, each had its sights set on the same thing — the city championship.

The Generals and Guardians, playing in the final two-game Portland Interscholastic League series of the season, entered Friday’s contest at Wells with identical 11-1 league records, setting up a big-game scenario that could be felt on Clopton Field, in the dugouts, in the stands and, yes, on top of the hill behind the first-base dugout.

“Absolutely, that all made it more fun,” said Grant senior catcher Brady McCarthy, who helped lead the Generals to a 3-0 victory. “This was like a playoff game. The atmosphere was great. I know a bunch of players on their team. There’s no bad blood, just two good teams going at it.”

Grant senior catcher Brady McCarthy, with his teammates behind him, is all smiles after the Generals’ 3-0 win at Wells in Friday’s PIL showdown. / Dan Brood

“This was amazing,” said Grant junior pitcher Jinki Tomita, who turned in a complete-game effort on the mound. “Every series, every year (between the two teams), has been good and close. This was a good way to end the regular season. Of course, this is really fun. It was a great time today.”

“This was pretty exciting,” said Wells senior Cody Roletto, who had two hits. “We usually face Grant in the first league series, last year and the year before that. So, having Grant as our last series this year is pretty exciting. We can throw all we have at them, and they can throw all they have at us.”

Grant improved to 12-1 in PIL play (17-7 overall), giving the Generals at least a share of the Portland Interscholastic League title.

“This win means a lot,” said Grant junior designated hitter Elliot Raiton, who drove in one of the Generals two first-inning runs. “Our team hasn’t won a city championship in a while. This is my first city championship, so I’m just proud to get it for us, especially the seniors.”

“This is my second league-championship win,” McCarthy said. “I won one my first year; my freshman year, I played on varsity, and we won one that year. We missed it the past two years. Getting that today, against one of the best teams, a top-15 team in the state, just felt unbelievable.”

Of all the celebrating Generals after the game, the happiest might have been Tomita. For the junior pitcher, who almost seemed to be emotionally drained after the contest, not only did his amazing performance on the mound help the team clinch at least a share of the title, but it gave him some redemption.

“This was a really good game to me. Last year, I didn’t do as well (against Wells), so this was a very important game for me. I got revenge,” Tomita said. “Yeah, I was motivated. I was just really pumped up today. It was exciting.”

Grant junior pitcher Jinki Tomita fires a pitch to the plate in Friday’s game at Wells. Tomita threw a complete-game four-hit shutout in the Generals’ 3-0 victory. / Dan Brood

Wells moved to 11-2 in PIL games and to 17-7 overall. The Guardians still have a chance to claim their share of the city championship. They can do so with a win in the second game of the series, which will be played Monday at Grant High School.

“I think this will give us some extra motivation for Monday,” Roletto said. “We want it bad, seeing that we don’t have a (league championship) board at our field for about 12 years (since 2013), and I feel like we’ve been a strong contender the past few years. This year, we can definitely contend for it. We’re going to try to give it our all on Monday.”

The Generals, who don’t want to share the crown, say they’ll also be ready to give it their all in Monday’s rematch.

“It’s going to be awesome,” McCarthy said. “A lot rides on it, but I think we just need to come with the same energy that we did today and really rely on each other and not do too much. We’ve got that ‘next man up’ mentality. That’s how we’ve gone through this whole season. (Head coach Matt Kabza) has preached that all season, and it worked out in one of the biggest games of the season.”

Grant struck for two runs in the first inning of Friday’s big game. McCarthy drew a leadoff walk, moved to second on a balk and scored the game’s first run when Raiton doubled to left field.

“I was trying to start us off strong,” Raiton said. “I knew Brady would get in on any hit, so I just tried to put the ball in play.”

Raiton scored on a single by Kaeden Cruse, giving the Generals their quick 2-0 advantage.

Grant got its third run in the top of the fifth inning. McCarthy ripped a one-out triple to right-center field and scored on Raiton’s deep sacrifice fly to center field.

With the way Tomita was pitching, that would be more than enough. Tomita allowed four hits, striking out seven and walking one.

“I was just ready to get my revenge,” Tomita said. “I threw mainly fastballs, but the timely sliders were good.”

McCarthy went 2 for 3 at the plate with a triple, a stolen base and two runs. Raiton, senior Kaden Cruse, sophomore Grant Snidow, who doubled, and senior Rafferty Cruikshank had one hit apiece. Grant also played error-free defense, especially looking solid in the middle infield with junior Luke Caron at second base and Snidow at shortstop.

Grant sophomore shortstop Grant Snidow makes a throw to first base for an out during the Generals’ 3-0 victory at Wells on Friday. / Dan Brood

“Jinki’s pitching, and the defense was phenomenal today on a tough field,” Raiton said. “Our hitters got it going today.”

Besides the hitting, pitching and defense, the Generals say they have another thing going for them — their cohesiveness.

“Our team is really close,” Tomita said. “It’s really fun playing with these guys. I can always trust them. The defense, I can always trust.”

“We’re just a really sticky team. We spend a lot of time together,” Raiton said. “We know each other very well, and we want everyone on our team to succeed.”

“I think the big thing for us is just how close we are. We’re so tight-knit — we do everything together. We eat, we go get food, we go play games, we play video games together — everything is together,” McCarthy said. “Our team trip to Arizona (in late March) really allowed us to bond. Everyone came out of their shell, and we never looked back.”

Now, the Generals are looking ahead to a possible outright city championship, and they could get that with a win in Monday’s rematch with Wells.

“That would be really special,” Raiton said. “This is the moment we’ve been waiting for. We knew it might come down to this. We just tried to remember all the hard work we put it, take it into the game and play free.”

“That is the goal,” Tomita said. “We’re going to aim for that, and I think we’re going to get it.”

Grant senior Tre Hoffert (left) and junior Lincoln Norick celebrate after the Generals’ 3-0 victory at Wells in Friday’s game. / Dan Brood

The Guardians are hoping they have something to say about that.

“I think this was pretty fun today. It was a 3-0 game — no blowout. Both pitchers did good,” Roletto said. “I think we’ll have a good game on Monday. I think we’ll throw our ace (Jack Burnham) pitching on Monday, and we should do pretty good.”

Roletto paced the Wells offense in Friday’s game, going 2 for 3 with a double. Senior Diggy Griffin hit a two-out triple in the bottom of the fifth inning, and senior Jackson Poole added a hit.

Wells sophomore pitcher Grae Wilson threw a complete game, allowing three runs on six hits, striking out six and walking three.

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