PORTLAND, Ore. – Christian Peters struck out 11 in eight shutout innings and Ben Patacsil hit a clutch two-run single as Portland defeated Santa Clara 3-2 on Friday. The Pilots improve to 4-0 in West Coast Conference play with the victory, matching the 2010 squad as the only teams in program history to open WCC play with four wins.
Friends and family members were able to attend in-person for the first time at the newly renovated Joe Etzel Field and they were treated to an entertaining game.
Peters (4-2) was dominant on the mound for the third straight outing as he scattered seven hits and no walks. He has won all three games allowing just two runs in 21.1 innings with 24 strikeouts during the stretch. His 37 strikeouts this year are the most in the WCC.
The senior right-hander struck out the side in the fifth inning and the Pilots (11-9, 4-0 WCC) carried the momentum into the bottom half of the inning.
Three singles from Jake Tsukada, Jake Holcroft and Hunter Montgomery loaded the bases with one out. Santa Clara went to the bullpen and brought on Alex Reelfs who got a big strikeout, but Chad Stevens was able to draw a two-out walk to put the Pilots on the board. Patacsil then came through with a clutch two-run single to left for a 3-0 lead.
The Broncos (7-14, 0-4) got back-to-back two-out singles in the eighth to bring the tying run to the plate, but Peters ended the threat with a flyout.
Portland transitioned to closer Eli Morse for the final three outs and Santa Clara made it interesting. Michael O'Hara led off and reached on an awkward soft liner to shortstop. Morse induced a groundout, but then Jake MacNichols crushed his WCC-leading eighth home run of the season to make it 3-2.
Morse bounced back with a strikeout before Tony Boetto singled and stole second. Portland's senior right-hander came up with a big strikeout of Matt Jew to end the game. Morse picked up his league-leading sixth save of the season, one shy of the national leader.
Portland collected seven hits and left six runners on base, while the Broncos had 10 hits and stranded five. Neither team committed an error.
Freshman second baseman Jake Tsukada was the lone Pilot with multiple hits as he finished 2-for-4 and raised his season batting average to .346. Patacsil, another freshman, is now hitting a team-high .365.
The series continues Saturday with a 2 p.m. first pitch and concludes on Sunday with a noon start. There are no public tickets available as the 25 percent stadium capacity allotment has been filled for the weekend with player and guest tickets. Live video and stats will be available at PortlandPilots.com.
NOTE: GENERAL PUBLIC IS NOT CURRENTLY ALLOWED TO BUY TICKETS DUE TO LIMITED CAPACITY... WE HOPE TO BE ABLE TO OFFER TICKETS WITH EXPANDED ATTENDANCE IN THE FUTURE!
