Saturday, July 11, Springfield, Ore. – The Knights suffered their worst loss of the season when they fell 11-0 to Springfield at the Hamlin Sports Complex.
It was the second setback in a row for Corvallis (21-17, 18-17 WCL, 5-3 second half), which lost 10-1 on July 10 in the series opener. The Drifters captured their first home series win over Corvallis since 2022, their initial season in the West Coast League.
Incoming Oregon State sophomore Diego Cruz singled and doubled and future Beaver teammate Ethan Porter (pictured, above) singled twice for the Knights, who had just five hits.
Springfield dinged Corvallis starter Neal Burtis (incoming Oregon State) for three runs in the first inning, and never looked back. The Drifters added one in the second and two more in the third before Burtis was relieved by Jinki Tomita (Feather River) to start the fourth.
The Drifters ended all doubt by scoring five times in the seventh inning to extend their lead to 11-0.
Ryan Severns (UCSB) was 0-for-3, ending his hitting streak at seven games.
The series concludes at 4:05 p.m. on June 12. UCSB rising sophomore Josh Jannicelli (0-1, 4.32) is the projected starter for Corvallis.
The Knights are idle on July 13. Their next home game is a July 14 rematch with Gunderson Baseball. They edged Gunderson 2-1 at Goss on June 24.
The WCL All-Star Game is Wednesday, July 15, at Victoria. The Knights host the Salem Sock Puppets in a nonleague game on July 16, then resume WCL action against Walla Walla at Goss Stadium on July 17-19.