Boys varsity baseball: Astoria sweeps Ilwaco in summer league finale

Published 3:51 pm Monday, July 10, 2023

Ilwaco senior Ethan Hopkins delivers a pitch in relief against Astoria.

LONG BEACH — Two rising varsity boys baseball teams met for a summer league finale last week in Long Beach, where the visiting Astoria squad (7-3) was able to sweep a shorthanded Ilwaco team (8-3) in back-to-back games.

Astoria was led by sophomore Joey Gramlich, who blasted a second-inning two-run home run that gave the visiting team a 6-2 lead that they would never relinquish.

Astoria starting pitcher sophomore Dallas Norris went the distance for the visiting team, while Ilwaco starter Corbin Johnson lasted five innings before incoming senior Ethan Hopkins finished in relief.

The games were largely a showcase of underclass talent, as both teams were without some of their most prominent players.

Ilwaco, playing without Pacific League all-stars Boston Caron, Kaemon Sawa, Cannon Johnson, Jacob Rogers and Kyle Morris while they participate with Team Elite — an 18-and-under AAA baseball program based in Toledo — featured several underclassmen in their matchup against Astoria.

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