Friday, July 17, Corvallis, Ore. – South Division leader Walla Walla smacked the Knights 10-5 in the series opener before a Goss Stadium crowd of 1,540.
The Sweets battered four Corvallis (23-18, 19-18 WCL, 6-4 second half) pitchers for 17 hits, including two homers and two doubles. They were not retired in order in any inning.
Left fielder Will Jessske (Nebraska, pictured above) was 3-for-4 in his first counting game with the Knights to garner Washington Park Advisors Player of the Game honors. He scored once and drove in a run.
First baseman Ethan Porter (Oregon State), the MVP of the July 15 WCL All-Star Game at Victoria, was 2-for-3 with a double and three runs scored. DH Zane Garvey was 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI.
Walla Walla went up 1-0 in the third on a solo homer by Bo Stinson. Corvallis replied with a single by Jesske in his first at-bat as a Knight, and a Kellen Segel’s (Cal Poly) booming double off the center field fence.
However, the Sweets erupted for five unanswered runs in their next two at-bats to grab a 6-1 advantage. Corvallis got one back in the fifth on Jesske’s RBI single, but they could not score again despite having runners on second and third with no outs.
The Sweets then scored four times in the seventh to assume a 10-2 margin. Corvallis pecked away for three runs in its final three at-bats but the deficit was too large to overcome.
The series resumes at 7:15 p.m. on July 18 on Drone Light Show night, presented by Pioneer Connect. Stanford-bound righty Bryce Hill (0-1, 5.27) gets the ball for Corvallis. Please note the special starting time.
Cal Poly righty Arlo Pendleton (1-1, 3.27) is the probable for the July 19 finale, starting at 5:05 p.m.
Corvallis idle on July 20. The homestand concludes on July 20-22 with a South Division series against the Bend Elks; all three games begin at 6:35 p.m.
The crowd of 1,540 raised the season attendance to 31,362 in 21 dates, an average of 1,493 per opening.