Knights rookie arms hold off Pickles, 7-6

Tuesday, Aug. 5, Corvallis, Ore. – A cast of first-time pitchers and some tested veterans each starred for the Knights in a 7-6 victory over defending WCL-champion Portland before an appreciative Goss Stadium crowd of 1,652.

Starter Connor Yudhishthu, added to the team earlier in the day, battled through seven innings – the longest outing by any Knights pitcher this summer – and earned a deserved victory. He gave up nine hits, but only five earned runs.

Yudhishthu (pictured, above) threw 55 strikes in 77 pitches, fanned two and walked one batter. The future Linn-Benton righty, from Grant High School in Portland, earned Washington Park Advisors Player of the Game honors.

Two other first-day Knights finished up. Mark Carpenter, Yudhishthu’s future teammate at LBCC next spring, added a perfect eighth inning, with one strikeout.

Umpqua CC righty Brevin Harrison earned the save. Portland put the go-ahead run on with one out in the ninth on an error and an infield single, but Harrison induced a line drive to second baseman Thomas Ferroggiaro (Santa Clara) for the second out. His relay to shortstop Blake Wilson (Washington) doubled the runner off second to end the game, played in an efficient 2:09

The Knights (42-15 all, 38-15 WCL, 21-5 second half) moved into a first-place tie with the Pickles (22-6) in the second half pennant race. The champion will be determined on Aug. 6 in the regular-season finale. Both teams will have home-field advantage for the first round of the South Division playoffs, which start Aug. 8.

Ferroggiaro was outstanding at the plate and in the field. He was 1-for-3 with three RBIs and a run; his seventh-inning sacrifice fly plated the eventual winning run, giving the Knights a 7-5 advantage.

He also had 10 defensive chances without an error, with seven assists and three putouts. He started two double plays and gunned down the potential tying run in the seventh inning on a 9-4-3 putout.

Cole Katayama-Stall (Portland) was 3-for-4 with two RBIs. Wilson was 2-for-3 with two runs and Maverek Russell (UCLA) went 3-for-4 with a run.

Aug. 6 is Fan Appreciation Night, with attendees eligible for raffle prizes and giveaways. Chance Wallace of Utah Valley University is the projected starter for the Knights in the 6:35 p.m. regular-season finale.

The best-of-3 divisional playoffs start on the road on Aug. 8, against either Marion or Bend. The Knights will host Game 2 and Game 3 (if necessary) on Aug. 9-10.

The South and North divisional championship games are set for Aug. 12. The WCL championship is Aug. 14; the team with the best overall West Coast League record will host.

The Knights added five pitchers for the final two regular-season games, helping save regulars for the postseason. The newcomers will not be eligible for the playoffs.

The new hurlers are George Fox right-handers Blake Freese and Andrew Miller; Umpqua CC’s Ty Hellenthal and Brevin Harrison, and Mark Carpenter of Linn-Benton CC.

Tuesday’s crowd of 1,652 raised the season attendance to 48,025 in 30 openings. That’s an average of 1,601; the Knights are 2,072 fans ahead of last season’s attendance through a similar number of home dates.

Box score