Kamloops – Fans were treated to extra innings once again with a similar result. The Corvallis Knights and Kamloops NorthPaws needed 11 innings to find a winner, with the NorthPaws unable to fight back in the bottom of the 11th. After several lead changes, the Paws tied things up in the sixth and had numerous favourable situations to win the game, but came up empty, allowing the Knights to take game two 11-9.
The Knights got on the board first, just three batters in, with a sacrifice fly. In the bottom of the second, the NorthPaws answered with three of their own. Logan Booth led off with a double and advanced to third following an Ian Huang single. Camden Sanders delivered an RBI with a sacrifice fly to center field, tying the game. Center fielder Kade Crawford was the next man up and hit a towering home run over the left field wall, putting Kamloops up two runs.
Corvallis cut the lead in half with a run in the top of the fourth inning. The Knights weren’t done there as they forged on in the fifth with three more runs, regaining the lead.
The knights began the inning with a walk, a single and a double steal to put runners on second and third with nobody out. Three straight one-out singles and a hit by pitch brought home the three runs, giving Corvallis the 5-3 lead.
In the bottom of the sixth, the NorthPaws needed to create some momentum. Kenner Lauterbach began the inning with a single, followed by a one-out double by Sanders, putting runners on second and third. Kade Crawford then got hit by a pitch, loading the bases. Elijah Olaybal stepped up for the biggest at-bat of the game and delivered a two-strike single to left field, bringing the Paws within one. On the next pitch of the game, Brock Grainger tied it with an RBI single of his own.
The seventh and eighth innings were dominated by the pitchers, but the ninth was as stressful as it gets. The Knights loaded the bases in the top half after drawing three walks and staying patient at the plate, but were unable to cash in as right-handed pitcher Ian Vandepool got a huge strikeout in a full count.
The NorthPaws found themselves in a similar position to last night, with the game tied going into the bottom of the ninth. Grainger led off with a double, giving the crowd optimism that this night would end differently. Tanner Mitchell singled, putting more pressure on the Knights.
With the infield in, Marcus Butts hit one on the ground, pinch runner Dylan Dekker broke for home, but the throw beat him, keeping the Knights alive. With two outs, Kenner Lauterbach got hit by a pitch to load the bases, bringing up Anthony Setticasi. Facing a full count, Setticasi lifted a ball to center field that was caught, ending the inning.
In the tenth, Corvallis took advantage of the new runner rule, scoring both of its runs on a base hit to left field. The damage was limited to that, giving the NorthPaws some hope going into the bottom half.
It was an ideal start to the tenth for Kamloops. A wild pitch moved the runners to second and third while Sanders got on base once again with a walk. Kade Crawford got hit by a pitch once again, making it a one-run game with the bases still loaded with no one out. Elijah Olaybal drove in the tying run on a sacrifice fly, but that’s all the Northpaws could muster. The final two batters struck out to end the inning.
That swing in momentum propelled the Knights in the 11th. An early sacrifice bunt moved the runners up 90 feet. Corvallis hit three singles, bringing in four runs. Ultimately, that was too much for the NorthPaws to overcome, as they scored only two in the bottom half and suffered another heartbreaking loss to begin the season.
In total, the NorthPaws left 15 men on base, and it ended up costing them. The team will have a chance to salvage the series tomorrow afternoon at 12:05. It’s the last chance to see the Paws in action before they hit the road for a six-game Washington road trip.
Recent Comments