Coeur d'Alene, Post Falls split baseball doubleheader at Ted Page Field

Bam Fenter gave Coeur d'Alene the first punch at Ted Page Field, then Post Falls took the last word. The Kootenai County rivals split a 6A Inland Empire League doubleheader Thursday, with the Vikings winning 7-0 before the Trojans answered 7-5 in the nightcap, a result that keeps both clubs in the race and puts the next league stretch under a sharper spotlight.

Fenter, the Coeur d'Alene senior headed to Lewis-Clark State College, dominated the opener with two hits allowed and 12 strikeouts. He also turned the game into a personal showcase at the plate, launching a three-run home run in the sixth inning as the Vikings pulled away. Coeur d'Alene scored three runs in the first and added insurance in the fourth and sixth, while Post Falls never found a foothold against Fenter and reliever Vinny Paliotto. The box score told the story plainly: Coeur d'Alene 7, Post Falls 0.

Post Falls flipped the script in game two with timely hitting and a fifth-inning swing that changed the tone of the split. Gavin Wienker delivered the decisive blow, a go-ahead three-run double that pushed the Trojans in front 7-5 after Coeur d'Alene had climbed back into the game with four runs over the third and fourth innings. Post Falls finished with seven hits and made them count, while Coeur d'Alene could not complete the comeback despite getting two hits from Fenter and doubles from Wienker, J.D. Foulk and Ryder Stevens on the home side.

The split left Post Falls at 3-8 overall and 1-2 in league play, while Coeur d'Alene moved to 4-3 overall and 2-1 in the 6A Inland Empire League. For a rivalry played less than 10 miles apart, the stakes go beyond one April doubleheader: league positioning, postseason seeding and local bragging rights are all moving with every series. Post Falls coach Kurt Reese said, "It really comes down to pitching league wide. We got dominated pretty good in the first game and Bam didn’t allow a lot of chances... When we’re able to get to the bullpen, that’s where we want to be."

The teams had already exchanged blows earlier in the week, when Coeur d'Alene won 24-9 and Fenter went 4-for-4 with two home runs, including a grand slam, before darkness stopped the other game at 12-12. That recent run has made Fenter the defining player in the series and the Vikings’ clear engine, while Wienker’s clutch hit showed Post Falls still has enough offense to salvage a split. With Lake City and Lewiston next on the league schedule, the next results will say whether Coeur d'Alene is turning Fenter’s surge into momentum or whether Post Falls can steady itself before the standings tighten further.