The Hillsboro Hops will head to Eugene for their first meeting against the defending Northwest League champion Emeralds holding a share of first place in the NWL.The Hops defeated the Boise Hawks 3-1 at Ron Tonkin Field Sunday night in the rubber match of their three game series, finishing their
The Hillsboro Hops will head to Eugene for their first meeting against the defending Northwest League champion Emeralds holding a share of first place in the NWL.
The Hops defeated the Boise Hawks 3-1 at Ron Tonkin Field Sunday night in the rubber match of their three game series, finishing their first homestand of the season with a 3-3 mark.
Leading 2-1 in the eighth, Cam Duzenack doubled and scored on an RBI single by Yan Sanchez to provide a key insurance run.
Boise caused some tense moments in the top of the ninth inning, loading the bases with two outs on a strikeout wild pitch and a pair of walks. Erbert Gonzalez retired former Vancouver Canadian Ryan Metzler to send 2,643 Hops fans home happy. It was Gonzalez's first save in the NWL and the fifth of his four-year professional career.
Matt Koch recorded the win in his second start with the Hops. Koch, who pitched for the Diamondbacks in 2016 and began this season at AAA Reno, allowed just three hits and no walks in six inning. The only run off Koch came on a long home run by Daniel Jipping, the first pro homer for the 22nd round draft pick out of Central Michigan. Jipping drove a 1-1 pitch high off the Tonkin Field scoreboard, fifteen feet over the fence at the 412-foot mark.
Jipping's blast gave Boise a 1-0 lead, but Hillsboro countered with two unearned runs in the bottom of the fifth to take the lead for good. With two aboard and none out, Connor Owings his a grounder to Metzler at first, who tried to get the force at second base and start a double play but threw wide of the mark. Duzenack drove in a run with a grounder to third, just beating out the relay throw to avoid what would have been the Hawks' third double play of the game. Bryan Araiza followed with a sharp single to right, plating Paxton De La Garza to give Hillsboro a 2-1 lead.
Junior Garcia threw 2 1/3 innings of scoreless, hitless relief for the Hops, getting the final out in the seventh and eighth innings with they tying run at third. The Hops worked around four errors thanks to the quality pitching of Koch, Garcia and Gonzalez.
De La Garza, Araiza and Sanchez all had two hits for the Hops, Sanchez extending his NWL-leading hit streak to 11 games.
Keinter Olivares suffered the loss for Boise, allowing two unearned runs on seven hits with three strikeouts and one base on balls.
Game one of the series at Eugene is at 7:05 p.m. at P.K. Park, with pregame airtime at 6:35 p.m. Rip City Radio 620 AM.
