Corvallis falls just short, is ousted 6-5

Tuesday, Aug. 12, Portland, Ore. – Corvallis battled to its final at-bat but fell 6-5 to Portland in the South Division championship game before an overflow Walker Stadium crowd of 3,225.

The Knights (45-17) thus finished the summer one game short of the West Coast League’s championship game for the second year in a row. They were also eliminated by the defending-champion Pickles in 2024.

Second baseman Thomas Ferroggiaro (Santa Clara) concluded his outstanding two-year Knights career in standout fashion, going 2-for-4 with a homer, three RBIs, a walk and a stolen base. Ferroggiaro starred in the playoffs, hitting .353 (6-17) with a double, a homer, four RBIs and three steals.

Incoming Stanford freshman center fielder Brock Ketelsen (pictured, above) was 3-for-4 with a double and three runs He also stole three bases despite receiving non-stop attention from the Pickles pitching staff in the form of attempted pickoffs.

He hit .375 (6-16) in four playoff games, with eight runs scored, a triple, a double, two RBIs and six steals.

DH Maverek Russell has the Knights only other hit, a single on an 0-2 count with two outs in the top of the ninth that moved the tying run to second base. He also walked twice and reached safely three times in five plate appearances.

Corvallis grabbed a 2-0 lead in the first inning on Ferroggiaro’s RBI single and a double steal, with Kettleson scoring on the back end. Portland drew even with a two-spot of its own in the second inning.

Ketelsen doubled and Ferroggiaro blasted his first homer of the summer to open the third inning, sending the Knights ahead 4-2. Portland responded again in the fourth, drawing within 4-3 with a leadoff homer.

A sacrifice fly by Cole Katayama-Stall (Portland) in the fifth, scoring Ketelsen, moved Corvallis back ahead 5-3. Portland again responded with a run in the bottom half to make it 5-4, and added two more in the sixth to surge ahead 6-5.

Corvallis loaded the bases with one out in the eight but two strikeouts ended the budding rally. The Knights also put two runners on after two outs in the ninth but another strikeout ended the game.

Zach Johnson (CSUN) allowed three runs and five hits over the first four innings, with one strikeout. Luke Kalfsbeek (Cal Poly) had two innings of scoreless relief to keep the Knights within range in the eighth and ninth innings, retiring all six Pickles he faced, with one strikeout.

Bellingham eliminated host Edmonton 5-2 in the other semifinal before a crowd of 7,439 at Re/Max Field in Edmonton. The Pickles will host the Bells in the championship game on Aug. 14.

The Knights drew 51,365 fans in 33 openings this summer. They averaged 1,557 fans per opening, and finished 201 fans behind last season’s attendance through a similar number of home dates.

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