Photos by Ray Hamill/HumboldtSports.com – Eureka pitcher David Vagle

The Eureka bats came to play on Wednesday, as the Loggers won for the second time in two days, comfortably taking care of business at home to Fortuna by a score of 11-1 in six innings.

Senior Isaak Guterriez finished 3-for-3 with a huge double to left field, while David Vagle continued to impress on the mound, as Eureka improved to 2-0 in the Big 5.

Also in action on Wednesday, Arcata bounced back from Saturday’s tough loss to McKinleyville with a 10-6 win at Del Norte, improving to 5-2 in the Big 5.

McKinleyville defeated Ferndale 14-4 in a non-conference game, also in six innings.

Eureka’s Tyce Mullins, left, is congratulated by teammates Zac Anderson (12) and Ben Tehan (20) after advancing a runner on a groundout during Wednesday’s game.

Fortuna 1, Eureka 11, six innings

The Loggers had 11 hits, scoring runs in five of the six innings played on the way to a comfortable win at home to the Huskies.

Gutierrez led a breakout performance at the plate, as Eureka improved to 6-3 overall.

“We finally broke out offensively and hit the ball like we’re capable,” Eureka head coach Jackie Christensen said. “I think all the rainouts had delayed our progress a bit, so it was great to see the bats come alive and for the guys to gain some confidence.”

Gutierrez, in particular, although he wasn’t alone.

Eureka’s Isaak Gutierrez (45) returns to the dugout after crushing a double to left field during Wednesday’s game.

“Isaak Gutierrez is really seeing and hitting the ball well and had a great day for us again,” Christensen said. “And we had 10 different players get hits and zero errors, so it was just an all-around great team effort.”

Vagle continued to dominate on the mound, allowing five hits in five innings, giving up just one run.

At the plate, Zac Anderson had a double and two RBIs, while Isley Tulmau was 2-for-2 with two RBIs, and Hayden Bode had a double and three RBIs.

“This was our first true home game on our own field so it felt good to be out there and I think the players responded,” Christensen said. 

Vagle, Tehan, Tyce Mullins, Brayden Youkey, Joshua Culbert and Jesse Anderson each also had a hit, with the latter also driving in a run.

Garrett Aust led the way for the Huskies at the plate, finishing 2-for-2, while Regan Nyberg, Gabe Sandberg and Caleb Crawley each also had a hit.

Fortuna dropped to 0-4 in the Big 5 and 3-9 overall.

The two teams are scheduled to play a doubleheader at Fortuna on Saturday.

Arcata 10, Del Norte 6

Merick Sears was outstanding once again on the mound for the Tigers, who  improved to 15-2 overall.

Sears struck out 11 in six innings, allowing just one run on three hits.

The Warriors scored five of their runs in the seventh inning after Sears had been taken out with an 8-1 lead.

“I thought Sears pitched a very good game,” Arcata head coach Troy Ghisetti said. “But in our league, you can’t take an inning off, because every team is going to step up and score runs.”

Jaden Gorge led a balanced and productive performance at the plate for Arcata with three hits, while Vincent Agliolo, Xavier Finegan, Mason Trapkus, Alex Gorge and Mason Nichols each had two hits and Damien Shelton one.

Del Norte dropped to 0-5 in the Big 5 and 3-8-1 overall.

The two teams are scheduled to play a doubleheader this weekend.

Ferndale 4, McKinleyville 14, six innings

Dustin Ireland and Cameron Saso led a 15-hit Panthers performance with three hits each.

Ireland finished with a pair of doubles and a triple and drove home four runs, while Saso had a double, an RBI and scored three runs.

Chase Fisher added two hits including a home run, as well as three RBIs, as the home team dominated.

The Panthers scored five runs in the bottom of second and added runs in each of the next four innings to gradually pull away.

Mason Hooven had a double ad two RBIs, while Corbin Eichin and Regan Wolfe each had two hits.

Jack Patton pitched 3.1 solid innings for the win, allowing just one run on three hits and walking two.

Kyler Carr also pitched well in relief.

With the win, the Panthers improved to 13-1.

Ferndale is now 5-8.

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Ray Hamill writes at humboldtsports.com, where you can read lots more about sports in Humboldt County.