PORT ANGELES — The Lefties were unable to punch through a run in the final five innings, allowing the Corvallis Knights to come back on them for a 6-5, 10-inning loss in their return to Civic Field on Friday.
The Lefties also beat Walla Walla 6-4 on the road Thursday.
The Lefties got up 5-3 in the fifth inning in Friday’s home game, but Knights’ pitchers Miles Glazier and Chase Kaplan combined to strikeout 10 Lefties over the final five innings.
The Lefties had their chances, getting the bases loaded in the seventh inning and two runners on the eighth. They also had the tying run on base in the bottom of the 10th inning, but they never got the big, timely hit to blow the game open. The Lefties ended up leaving 16 runners on base.
In fact, for a relatively low-scoring game, there were a lot of baserunners as the two teams combined for 22 hits, 14 walks and four hit batsmen.
Starter Nick Bonniksen went six innings, giving up three earned runs on just six hits. Garrett Smith, the sixth Lefties pitcher of the game, pitched the 10th and took the loss after giving up a dreaded leadoff walk to Elliot Willy, who eventually came in to score the go-ahead run on a single by Emilio Alcantar.
Austyn Tengan was 2 for 4 with two runs scored, with a double, RBI and a walk. Sean Roby and Ian Nowak were each 2 for 5.
Marten Pauwells and Aki Buckson had doubles for the Lefties while Nowak had two stolen bases. Jake Portaro and Benny Kaleiwahea each had RBIs.
Notes
The game took nearly 4 1/2 hours to play. The Knights struck out a total of 18 Lefties. Corvallis’ Jordan Qsar (Pepperdine University) hit a home run in the first inning, his 11th of the year. Qsar is leading the West Coast League in home runs. The Lefties played an errorless game.
Port Angeles 6, Walla Walla 4
WALLA WALLA — Sean Roby came through with an RBI double and an insurance home run late as the Lefties managed a split of a two-game road series with the Sweets.
Port Angeles (4-6, 14-23) went 5-1 on the season against Walla Walla.
The Lefties received solid at-bats from the bottom of the batting order. Hitting eighth, Kevin Kendall went 2 for 3 with a walk and two runs scored and No. 9 hitter Branden Williams came through with two hits and two RBIs, including an RBI double to score Kendall during a three-run
Port Angeles starter Keiran Shaw (1-3) picked up his first win on the season after a number of hard-luck losing outings.
Shaw went five innings, allowing four runs on five hits and two walks. He allowed three runs in the fifth, including a two-out, two-run triple by the Sweets’ John Glenn, but recovered to strike out the next batter to close the frame and preserve a one-run lead.
The Lefties then received four innings of scoreless relief pitching combined from Brandon Reynolds and Aaron Charles to close out Walla Walla.
Charles was particularly impressive, striking out six batters while allowing two hits and one walk in three innings of work.
Roby led off the top of the ninth with a solo homer to give Charles some cushion.
The Lefties (14-24, 4-7 in the second half) played Saturday after press deadline. They play Corvallis again at Civic Field at 4:35 p.m. Sunday. Then the entire WCL takes a two-day break for the All-Star Game in Yakima on Tuesday. Lefties Bonniksen and Brody Kato have been picked to play in that game, though Kato is recovering from a broken wrist. Ian Nowak, who has hit five home runs since mid-June was invited to participate in the All-Star Game home run derby Monday in Yakima.
Corvallis 6, Port Angeles 5 (10 innings)
Knights 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 — 6 11 1
Lefties 1 2 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 — 5 11 1
WP: Kaplan LP: Smith
Pitching
Knights — Crow 1.1IP, 4H, 3ER, 4BB, 4K; Richman 2.2IP, H, 2K; Somers 1IP, 3H, 2K; Glazier 2IP, H, BB, 3K; Kaplan 3IP, 2H, BB, 7K.
Lefties — Bonniksen 6IP, 6H, 3ER, 2BB, 4K; Zmuda 2IP, H, ER, 3BB, 3K; Gartner 0.2 2H, ER; Hagan 0.0IP, H, BB; Fralely, 0.1IP, 0H, 0BB; Smith, 1IP, H, ER, 2BB, 2K.
Hitting
Knights — Qsar 3-3, HR, R, 4RBI, 2BB; Alcantar 3-4, R, RBI; Shrum 2-5, R, RBI; Kelly 2-5, R, BB.
Lefties — Tengan 2-4, 2B, 2R, RBI, BB, HP; Roby 2-5; Nowak 2-5, 2SB; Pauwells 1-3, 2B, R, BB, HP; Buckson 1-6, 2B, R; Portaro 1-5, RBI, BB.
Port Angeles 6, Walla Walla 4
Lefties 0 0 1 3 1 0 0 4 1 — 6 13 3
Sweets 0 0 1 0 3 0 0 2 0— 4 8 0
WP: Shaw LP: Villegas
Pitching
Lefties — Shaw 5IP, 5H, 4ER, 2BB, 2K; Reynolds IP, H, K; Charles 3IP, 2H, BB, 6K.
Sweets — Josten 3.2IP, 4H, 4ER, 2BB, 4K; Villegas 0.2IP, 5H, ER, BB, K; Molna
Hitting
Lefties — Roby 2-5, 2B, HR, R 2RBI; Williams 2-4, 2B, R, 2RBI; Bellafronto 2-4, 2B, BB; Adams 1-3, HP; Nowak 1-5, R.
Sweets — Johnston 3-5, 2B, R; Hancock 1-4, BB, 2RBI; Glenn 2-4, 3B, 2RBI.
