Late comeback earns Knights 7-5 victory over Ridgefield Raptors

Tuesday, July 2, Corvallis, Ore. – The Knights opened their final first-half series by rallying for a 7-5 victory over Ridgefield before a Goss Stadium crowd of 1,126.

Corvallis (24-5 all, 20-5 WCL) scored three times in the seventh inning to erase a 5-4 deficit.  An RBI single by Kevin Takeuchi (USC) tied the game and an RBI groundout by Luke Lavin (Stanford) knocked in the go-ahead run. An insurance run crossed on a wild pitch.

Lavin (pictured, above) had three RBIs on the night, earning him Washington Park Advisors Player of the Game honors.

Gabe Hernandez (CSUN) got the third out in the seventh inning to quelch a Ridgefield rally and then pitched a scoreless eighth inning to claim the pitching decision. Thomas Ferroggiaro (Santa Clara) turned a hot smash into an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play in the eighth to provide the defensive highlight.

Bransen Kuehl (Utah) went the ninth for his third save of the summer. Starting pitcher Tyner Horn (Nebraska) allowed one run in four innings, had six strikeouts and left with a 2-1 lead the Raptors would erase.

Ridgefield led 3-2 in the fifth inning but Takeuchi tied the score with a two-out RBI single. The Raptors pulled ahead again 4-3 in the sixth but CJ Colyer (Pacific) knotted it again with an RBI single.

Ridgefield surged ahead again 5-4 in the seventh before the Knights responded with the decisive three-spot in the home half.

The Knights 1-2 hitters, Blake Wilson (Washington) and Kasen Khansarinia (UCLA), each scored twice, walked once apiece, and reached safely in four of eight at-bats.

The series resumes on July 3 with the annual Oregon State Credit Union Fireworks Night, set for 7:15 p.m. The game will sell out, so get your tickets now. Oregon State redshirt freshman James DeCremer (0-0, 1.58) is Corvallis’s scheduled starter, opposed by Cole Tryba (1-0, 0.00) of UC Santa Barbara.

The Knights conclude the first half of the season on July 4 with a 3:05 p.m. encounter at Ridgefield. Jackson Flora (0-0, 0.00) is UC Santa Barbara will pitch for Corvallis, opposite Curtis Hebert (1-0, 0.00) of Portland for Ridgefield.

The Knights are then idle until a July 7 game against Springfield at the Hamlin Sports Complex. First pitch has been moved back to 7:35 p.m. because of the anticipated high temperatures.

Corvallis has clinched the first-half South Division championship and will advance to the West Coast League playoffs for the 17^th consecutive season. The postseason starts on Aug. 10.

Box score