Porter, Knights pound Drifters, claim series

Saturday, July 4, Corvallis, Ore.  – Ethan Porter drove in seven runs and the Knights provided the offensive fireworks in a 16-5 rout of Springfield before a Goss Stadium crowd of 1,058.

The rising Oregon State sophomore (pictured, above) doubled twice, singled twice, scored three times, hit a sacrifice fly, walked and went 4-for-4, reaching safely in five of his six plate appearances to nab Washington Park Advisors Player of the Game plaudits.

Corvallis (18-14, 15-14 WCL, 2-0 second half) thus earned a series win over the Drifters. The Knights prevailed 3-0 on July 3 in the opener.

The Knights scored three times in first and four times in the second to grab a quick 7-0 advantage. They led 9-1 before the Drifters took advantage of walks to score four times in the sixth, making a game of it again at 9-5.

However, Corvallis scored six times on one hit in the bottom half to build an insurmountable 15-5 cushion. The lone hit was a bases-loaded double by Porter that sent all three runners home.

Center fielder Max Medina (incoming Cal Poly) had an inside-the-park homer, a single, two runs and two RBIs. Shortstop Ryan Severns (UCSB) had three hits, and two RBIs; every starter except Severns scored at least once.

Reliever Mac Zawistoski (Eastern Illinois) got a one-pitch double play to end the Drifters’ sixth-inning rally. He then added three more scoreless, no-hit innings to earn his first save.

The series concludes at 5:05 p.m. on July 5. UCSB righty Josh Jannicelli (0-1, 5.68) gets the baseball for the Knights; Springfield has not announced a projected starter.

The Knights are idle on July 6. They begin a 6-day road trip that includes series at Portland (July 7-9) and at Springfield (July 10-12). Their next home game is a July 14 rematch with Gunderson Baseball; they edged Gunderson 2-1 at Goss on June 24.

The crowd of 1,058 raised the season total to 25,491 in 17 home dates. That’s an average of 1,499 per outing.

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