Harris blows out the candles, and eight batters, on his 18th birthday

Like candles on a cake, Dylan Harris blew down eight Fort Vancouver batters on his 18th birthday.

“It’s become a program tradition. You always pitch on your birthday,” said the Camas High School senior. “It’s your special day. Go out on the bump and let everybody know.”

The Papermakers beat the Trappers 7-3 March 27, at Fort Vancouver. Harris took a shutout into the seventh inning, before running into some trouble. He handed the ball off to Connor McClellen, who got the last two outs of the game on a double play.

“Everyone asks what you did on your 18th birthday. I went out and played baseball,” Harris said. “There’s not a much better present than that.”

On Wednesday, the Papermakers beat the Union Titans 8-4 for their fifth win in a row. Sophomore Reilly Hennessey knocked in four runs on two, 2-out singles.

“I stayed focused on the task at hand, looked for a pitch I could drive and it worked out for me both times,” Hennessey said. “It felt great to contribute with guys on base. I’ve been waiting for that moment all year. Hopefully more come.”

After Hennessey got Camas on the board first with a 2-out RBI single in the fourth inning, Chad Spring launched a double into right field for another run and Harris added a 2-run infield single to give the Papermakers a 4-0 advantage.

“Baseball is such a streaky game. Once you get hot, you want to stay hot,” Harris said. “If Reilly and I can break out, it shows the younger guys that they have the same chance to break open a game and be a leader.”

Dylan White, Nate Lauritzen, Gabe Heredia and Luke Minder contributed to the victory on the mound. Camas also turned to four pitchers to complete a 1-0 shutout against Heritage on March 26. Lauritzen tossed three no-hit innings to pick up the victory. Heredia followed with a perfect fourth and fifth, Minder threw a scoreless sixth and Tyler Hallead shut the door in the seventh.