By Paul Gadbois - RedBluffBaseball.com

Friday, April 11 - vs. Oroville

The Red Bluff varsity baseball team snapped its two-game funk on Friday with a 12-0 pounding of Oroville at home.
Ben Redfield pitched a one-hit shutout to put the Spartans back on the winning track, striking out six batters with no walks in five innings.
Red Bluff got on the board early with runs in the first and second innings to lead 4-0, then rallied for eight more in the fourth to enforce the 10-run mercy rule.
The Tigers' only hit came in the first inning, but he was stranded at second base. In the bottom half, Daniel Zelwick opened with a base hit for the Spartans. Josh Penne doubled to move Zelwick to third, and Zelwick scored on a groundout to the right side by lefty-hitting Lucas Sandow. Penne also advanced on the play and later scored on a passed ball.
In the second, Stephen Collins kicked off the rally with a one-out, full-count single. Zelwick was hit by a pitch and Penne loaded the bases with his second hit of the day. Sandow scored Collins with another RBI groundout and Zelwick streaked home on a passed ball.
The Spartans went down 1-2-3 in the third but sent 14 batters to the plate in the fourth to ice Oroville.
The hit parade began with a leadoff single from Cody Gappa. Collins walked and with one out, Penne also walked to load the bases. Sandow drove in his third run of the game with a base hit and Collins scored on an error by the pitcher. Chris Jones entered the game as catcher Simon Villalvazo's courtesy runner, and Lance Zazueta belted a three-run double to clear the bases. E.J. Stanton clobbered a RBI double with two outs to extend the rally and Gappa's fly ball to center was misplayed to bring home another run. Collins singled to advance Gappa, and pinch hitter Josh Thompson singled to score him for the 12th run.
Redfield improved his pitching record to 5-0 on the season. The Tigers' only baserunner past the first inning resulted from an infield error in the fourth. However, Oroville's bid to avoid being shutout was held up at second base.
Red Bluff (4-2 EAL, 14-3) has a crucial week ahead, starting tomorrow with a road game against Chico. The Spartans host Foothill on Wednesday and turn around to play the Cougars on the road Friday.

Oroville 000 00x x — 0 1 1
Red Bluff 220 8xx x — 12 11 1

RED BLUFF IP H R ER BB SO
Redfield (W, 5-0) 5 1 0 0 0 6

Top hitters:
Zelwick 1X2, R; Thompson 1X1, RBI; Penne 2X2, 2B, 2 R; Sandow 1X3, 3 RBI; Zazueta 1X3, 2B, 3 RBI, R: Redfield 1X3; Stanton 1X3, 2B, RBI, R; Gappa 1X3, 2 R; Collins 2X2, 2R