A sloppy first inning proved costly for Warrenton baseball, as the Warriors fell 3-0 to Taft High School in a battle of 3A state title contenders on Saturday afternoon.
Warrenton pitcher Talon McGrorty gave up just one hit in seven innings, but three hit batters and errors by the Warriors in the second inning made the difference.
Taft pitcher Zack Hankins threw a five-pitch mix, including an 86-mph fastball and two breaking balls. His outing included 14 strikeouts, and he allowed just two hits.
The Warriors managed to force four walks and had a couple hard-hit balls to the outfield.
The loss snapped Warrenton’s 12-game winning streak and dropped the Warriors to No. 3 in the 3A Oregon School Activities Association rankings. Warrenton will get back to league play this week and will have an opportunity to wrap up another Coastal Range League title with a win against Horizon Christian on Wednesday afternoon.

Knappa baseball wins series
After losing to Portland Christian in game one of a three-game series, the Loggers came back to win the next two by scores of 7-3 and 13-3.
Jude Miller hit a home run for Knappa in the first inning and also walked three times. Oliver Stevens and Braxton Hill combined to strike out eight and allowed two earned runs on 11 hits.
Next up for the Loggers is a battle for the league championship against Clatskanie starting on Tuesday. The Loggers enter the upcoming series one game behind the Tigers in the league race.
Tuesday’s home game is a must win for the Loggers if they want to defend their league title from last season. The game is set to begin at 3 p.m. at Knappa’s baseball stadium.

Seaside softball sweeps nonleague opponents
Seaside brought out the bats in three nonleague games on Friday and Saturday. The Seagulls defeated McKay and Valley Catholic by a total score of 47-9.
The Seagulls started off the weekend with a 15-0, three-inning victory over McKay High School. Seaside scored seven runs in the first inning and eight runs in the second before the game was called after three innings, due to the 15-run rule. The Seagulls had 11 hits including a home run from Tiera Spivey.
In total, Seaside had four players with at least two hits. Layla Varozza went 3-3, while Carly Corder, Grace Walker and Megan Rahl had two hits. On the mound, Lydia Klumper gave up one hit and struck out eight.
In game two, Seaside had just four hits but scored 18 runs in two innings due to five McKay errors. The Seagulls scored 12 runs in the first and six in the second to win the game 18-1.
Seaside rallied from an early 3-0 deficit to defeat Valley Catholic 14-8 on Saturday. After being held scoreless for the first two innings, Seaside scored at least one run in every inning after, including five in the fourth.
In total, the Seagulls tallied 19 hits and stole three bases in the victory. Klumper and Corder each had four hits and combined for eight RBIs. Mackenzie Haag and Varozza had three hits apiece.
Klumper and Corder combined to allow just one earned run on the mound as they struck out six Valiants’ batters.
Seaside improved its record to 6-12 and has six more league games.