Edmonton wins finale, claims WCL series 2-1

Sunday, June 21, Corvallis, Ore.  – UC Santa Barbara right-hander Josh Jannicelli shined in his summer debut but the Knights fell 8-0 to Edmonton in the finale of their West Coast League series.

Jannicelli (pictured, above) allowed one run on three hits over four innings and threw 36 strikes in 56 pitches. But was the tough-luck loser, as the Knights trailed 1-0 when he departed. He struck out six and was named the Washington Park Advisors Player of the Game.

Edmonton broke the game open by scoring five times in the fifth inning to build an insurmountable 6-0 lead. The RiverHawks won the final two games to win their first-ever series at Goss Stadium since joining the league in 2022.

The Knights (11-11, 10-11 WCL) thus concluded a disastrous stretch of seven WCL home games with a 1-6 mark. They dropped the opener to Marion, then lost consecutive series to Nanaimo and Edmonton.

Left fielder Ethan Porter (Oregon State) was 1-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to six games. Catcher Xavier Rios (CSUN) tripled for the only extra-base hit.

The Father’s Day crowd of 1,217 included WCL Commissioner Rob Neyer. The Knights have now drawn 14,552 in 10 openings, an average of 1,455 per home date.

The Knights are idle on June 22-23. They conclude the homestand with nonleague encounters against Gunderson Baseball on June 24 and vs. the Corvallis Gerding Construction American Legion team on June 25.

Corvallis resumes WCL action vs. the Marion Berries at Chemeketa CC on June 26-28. Their next home WCL series is June 30-July 2 against the Portland Pickles.

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