The Lefties had the bases loaded in the ninth, but did not muster enough runs to surpass the NightOwls. (Photo courtesy of Maevis Photography)
Lefties can’t complete comeback, split series with Nanaimo
Written by: Thomas Johnson
The Lefties couldn’t carry over their magic from the night before.
In a July 4 matchup with Nanaimo, the Lefties were trailing in the bottom of the ninth with the bases loaded and Roberto Garza-Nunez (Embry-Riddle University) at the plate, as he represented the go-ahead run.
Port Angeles could not record its second walk-off win in as many days, though. Garza-Nunez had a hard-hit lineout to end the game to cement the Nanaimo NightOwls’ 5-2 win.
The NightOwls scored the first five runs of the game before the Lefties were able to get on the board, as Port Angeles had to play from behind for most of the afternoon. The Lefties fall to 3-12 this season when their opponent scores first.
The top of the Nanaimo order was its catalyst to winning; The one through hitters combined to go 8-for-12 at the plate, scoring all of the NightOwls’ runs. The rest of the order went a combined 1-for-20 as Port Angeles pitchers did a good job to send down the bottom half of the Nanaimo batters.
Lefties pitchers sent down the final 11 NightOwls who came up to the plate and only allowed one baserunner across the last four innings of the game, who catcher Jack Kleveno (University of Utah) erased with a back-pick to first base.
Ethan Kodama (UC Berkeley) had another strong day at the plate, notching another multi-hit game to his tally. The outfielder now has five multi-hit games since June 20 and has raised his batting average by nearly 160 points since that day.
Port Angeles will look to get back to its winning ways, starting a three-game set against the Bellingham Bells on Friday night at Civic Field with first pitch at 6:35.
