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Staffreport CHICO The Red Bluff Lady Spartans softball team won 4 of 5 games Friday and Satur- day at the Pleasant Valley Tour- nament, dropping the middle game to the Chico Panthers. The Spartans opened Friday morning with a 9-2 win over the Paradise Bobcats after a 6-run third. Allyson Drury and Aubree Akins each had a pair of RBI and Drury notched at dou- ble and a home run. Fresh- man Sarah Reineman gave up 2 earned, walked 3 and struck out 6 in the complete game win. Later in the morning the Spartans edged out the Sutter Huskies 8-6. After a big first in- ning for the Spartans, the Hus- kies took the lead 6-5 in the fourth before the Spartans ral- lied for 2 in the fifth and an in- surance run in the sixth. Akins and Reineman each had a pair of RBI and, along with Elizabeth Baccala, had home runs. Akins gave up 5 earned, including 3 home runs, in 2 in- nings on the mound. Reineman gave up an unearned run and struck out 4 in 5 innings. The Spartans took an 8-1 loss in 5 innings in Friday after- noon's game against the Pan- thers. Sophomore Aubrey Zamora had Red Bluff's only RBI with a double and the Spartans managed just 3 hits. Aikins SOFTBALL Lady Spartans take 4 of 5 games at PV tourney By Mitch Stacy The Associated Press DAYTON, OHIO To see the wide range and diversity of teams in the NCAA Tournament, look no further than the pair of First Four play-in games Wednesday night. The first game features two wide-eyed, "just-happy-to-be- here" schools — UC Davis and North Carolina Central — look- ing for what would be one of the biggest wins in the history of ei- ther program. The other two teams, Provi- dence and Southern California, have 48 tournament appearances between them and played a thrill- ing 1-point game in the opening round of 64 last year. Heads were still spinning Tues- day. "It still hasn't sunk in what we're doing," said Chima Moneke, a junior-college transfer who aver- aged 14.4 points for the Big West champion UC Davis, a school of 35,000 students west of Sacra- mento, California. The Aggies are playing in the tournament for the first time as a Division I school. Moneke's team faces North Carolina Central (25-8), a histor- ically black school of 8,000 stu- dents in Durham. Emerging as Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference champions, they're playing in the tournament for second time in the six seasons since moving to Division I. "For this being my first time and a lot of my teammates' first time, the experience from leav- ing school to getting on the MEN'S BASKETBALL FIRST FOUR PLAY-IN GAMES SHOW RANGE L.G.PATTERSON–THEASSOCIATEDPRESSFILE North Carolina Central's Patrick Cole shoots during the second half against Missouri on Nov. 28in Columbia, Mo. The NCAA Tournament o en creates stars out of players from one-bid conferences who had performed well in relative anonymity for most of the season. JAE C. HONG – THE ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE USC head coach Andy Enfield and point guard Jordan McLaughlin join Providence–two teams who have 48tournament appearances between them in the First Four. To see the range and essence of the NCAA Tournament though, look no further than the first play-in game on Wednesday night. Two unlikely, 'just-happy-to-here' schools, UC Davis and North Carolina Central meet. By Cam Inman Bay Area News Group None of the Raiders' past 253 kickoff returns resulted in a touchdown, a drought dating to 2011. Insert: Cordarrelle Patterson. The Raiders bolstered their re- turn game Monday night by sign- ing arguably the league's best kickoff returner over the past four seasons, when Patterson ex- celled in that role for the Minne- sota Vikings. "I feel like that's my best in the game right there, so I want to go and help on special teams as much as I can and get this re- ceiver stuff down pat," Patterson said on a media conference call Tuesday. Of Patterson's five career kick- off returns for touchdowns, one came against the host Raiders midway through 2015, when he raced untouched 93 yards for a go-ahead score in the Vikings 30- 14 win. "I remember it like it was yes- terday," Patterson said. "I had heard to stay away from the fans over there. I'm blessed to be a part of them right now. That touch- down, they gave me a lot of crap." Patterson received a two-year deal including $5 million guar- anteed, and the second year can be voided based on performance goals, USA Today reported. Last season, Jalen Richard led the Raiders with 17 kickoff re- turns for 402 yards (23.6 aver- age) upon replacing Taiwan Jones (eight returns, 112 yards). Patterson has led the league in kickoff-return average three of the past four seasons, including last year's top mark of 31.7 yards. The 2013 first-round draft pick made Pro Bowl and AP First Team All- Pro honors in 2013 and 2016. "Oh man, I love special teams, especially on kickoff returns," Pat- terson said. "It's just a feeling you wouldn't understand until you're back there to get that ball in your hands, you're nine yards deep in end zone and you've got those 10 guys in front of you that are going to block and give their all for you. "I'm willing to bring it out any time I can. If the coach gives me the OK, I want to bring it out." Patterson also wants the Raid- ers to bring more out of him as a receiver, having averaged only 10 yards per catch in his Vikings career. With Amari Cooper and Mi- chael Crabtree coming off 1,000- RAIDERS Pa tt er so n will return ki ck s fo r Oakland Staff report OROVILLE The Red Bluff Spar- tans baseball team took four wins Thursday and Saturday at the Oroville tournament to remain undefeated at 6-0 on the season, while the Corning Cardinals are still looking for their first win. The Spartans started the day Thursday with a 15-2 rout of the Wheatland Pirates in four in- nings. Tanner Tweedt and Payton Ed- wards each had 3 RBI and Eric Spencer and Austin Youngblood had a pair each. Ian Skjegstad, Ian Hoskins and Trenton Coates teamed up on the mound for the win, with Hoskins giving up the only earned run for the Spartans. In the afternoon game the Spartans trounced the Orland Trojans 16-3. Youngblood, Kolby Button and Tweedt each had 3 RBI. Spencer gave up an earned run in 2 in- nings pitched and struck out 4, while Evan Tanner pitched 4 in- nings, gave up 2 unearned runs and fanned 8 Trojans. Picking up the action Saturday afternoon in the semifinal round, the Spartans doubled up the Sut- ter Huskies 6-3. Edwards had a pair of RBI, and he, Button and Wes Clawson each had doubles. Button gave up 2 hits and struck out 10 in 4 scoreless innings and Trenton Coates had 3 unearned and struck out 5 in 3 innings. The Spartans took the tour- nament championship with a 2-1 win over the Chico Panthers Sat- urday night. Drew Stacy and Travis Fite scored for the Spartans and Fite and Clawson recorded doubles in the game. Clawson gave up 1 earned while striking out 6 over 4 innings and Skjegstad gave up a hit and a walk in 3 scoreless. The Spartans are scheduled to host the South Medford Panthers in a double header starting at 3 p.m. Thursday. Cardinals0-2-1 TheCorningCardinalsdropped games to Orland and Hamilton at the Oroville tournament and set- tled for a tie with Wheatland. The Cardinals fell 7-3 in ex- tra innings to open the season Thursday morning against the Trojans. Devin Wunsch had an RBI for the Cardinals and Travis Reid and Oscar Garcia each recored a double. Wunsch gave up 4 runs, 3 earned, and struck out 9 in 7 in- nings on the mound. Dalton Kes- ner allowed 3 and struck out 1 in the final inning. In the afternoon game, the Cards played to a 2-2 tie against the Pirates. Joey Caputo and sophomore Bryce Armstrong each had an RBI and Jake Alexander had a double. Noah Miller pitched 7 in- nings, gave up 2 unearned and fanned 9 Pirates. The Cardinals came up short Saturday against the Hamilton Braves 6-2. Armstrong and Miller each scored for the Cards. Armstrong gave up an earned run on 8 hits, striking out 4, over 4 innings. Al- exander gave up 2 earned and struck out 2 in 2 innings. The Cardinals hosted the An- derson Cubs Tuesday afternoon and lost 7-5. They are scheduled to face the Pierce Bears at 9 a.m. Thursday at the Axe Baseball Tournament in Willows. BASEBALL SpartansearnwinsatOroville NHAT V. MEYER – BAY AREA NEWS GROUP San Francisco 49ers' Jimmie Ward tackles Minnesota Vikings' Cordarrelle Patterson during a game in 2015. Patterson hopes to break a Raiders' drought in kickoff returns – Oakland hasn't returned one for a TD since 2011. FIRST FOUR PAGE 2 RAIDERS PAGE 2 Cardinals take two losses and a tie Cardinals successful as well as they pile up 4 wins at the Colusa tourney SOFTBALL PAGE 2 SPORTS » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, March 15, 2017 MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS B1