Wallowa Valley’s Lane Rouse slides into home to score during a doubleheader against Riverside during an April 2022 game. No sliding was required when Rouse belted two home runs during the 2023 Strawberry Mountain Slugfest in John Day on March 30 and 31.

ENTERPRISE — The Wallowa Valley baseball team settled for a split in just its second and third home games of the season Friday, April 29, dropping the opener of a Special District 5 doubleheader to Riverside, 11-9, before rolling in the nightcap, 14-1.

The Eagles squandered a 4-0 first-inning lead and an advantage of 6-2 in the opener. The Pirates scored twice in the third to cut the lead in half, three times in the fourth to take a 7-6 lead and added on in the fifth and sixth innings.

Spencer Decker and Maclane Melville each scored twice in the opening contest, and Lane Rouse finished with three RBIs.

In the second game, Wallowa Valley again took an early lead and this time didn’t let up. The Eagles scored twice in the third to pad their lead to 5-1, then broke the game open with nine runs in the fourth. Decker and Rouse, who each had three runs on the day, scored twice each in the fourth. In the frame, Wallowa Valley had seven hits, including five straight at one point. Rouse’s RBI double and Melville’s run-scoring single started the onslaught.

The Eagles (9-8 overall, 4-4 SD5) are currently in fourth in the district with four SD5 games to play. They next host Umatilla on May 4.