SAN FRANCISCO, Calif. -- The Portland Pilots needed 11 innings to finish the job, but earned the 9-8 extra-innings victory over the San Francisco Dons on Friday. The win secured the first-round bye for the Pilots in the WCC Tournament.
Peter Allegro (6-3) got the win out of the bullpen for Portland (29-20, 17-9). The right-hander went four innings, giving up four runs, three earned, on three hits, allowing five walks and striking out one. Jacob Dobmeier also pitched well, going three shutout innings while allowing one hit, walking two and striking out four.
Offensively, the Pilots were led by Nich Klemp, who went 4-for-6 on the day with two doubles. Those two doubles gave him the program record for doubles in a season. Jake Tsukada put together a standout effort as well, going 3-for-6 with a double and an RBI. Zach Toglia also helped out for Portland, putting together three hits in six trips to the plate while adding two RBI's.
How it Happened
The Pilots got on the board immediately, starting their scoring with two runs in the top of the first inning. Toglia drove in two runs for Portland with a single, that scored Jake Holcroft and Christian Cooney.
The Pilots then held the Dons scoreless before expanding their lead in the third inning. Evan Scavotto came across to score the lone run of the inning for Portland off a fielder's choice, which brought the score to 3-0 in favor of the Pilots.
Portland's lead had disappeared once the fourth inning arrived and turned into a 4-3 San Francisco advantage, but the Pilots tied up the game at four in the fourth. The Pilots scored on an RBI single off the bat of Cooney.
The game remained tied until the very next inning, when Portland got rolling again on offense. bringing the score to 7-4 in favor of Portland. Ben Patacsil, Henry Muench and Tsukada all had RBI hits in the fifth.
San Francisco fought back to tie the contest at seven with a three-run homer from Patrick Keighran in the ninth inning to take it to extra innings. The Pilots reclaimed a 9-7 advantage in the eleventh inning when they picked up two runs off a single from freshman Tyler Howard. San Francisco put one run on the scoreboard before the game was over in the bottom frame, but the Pilots still held on for the 9-8 win.
Game Notes
» Klemp compiled four hits on the day for Portland. It's the sixth time that he's had at least four hits in a game.
» The Pilots power output was led by Klemp, who had two extra base hits in the ballgame. His two doubles means he has 24 on the season, a school record.
» Every Portland starter reached base safely in the win.
» Five Pilots had multiple hits in the ballgame.
» The Pilots had a total of 18 hits.
» The Pilots out-hit the Dons at an 18-12 clip.
» Portland went 7-for-18 (.389) with runners in scoring position.
» Portland pitchers limited San Francisco to just 4-for-21 (.190) with runners in scoring position.
» Portland pitchers faced 58 San Francisco hitters in the game, allowing 10 ground balls and 15 fly balls while striking out eight.
» The Pilots drew seven walks from San Francisco pitching.
» Klemp led the Pilots at the plate, going 4-for-6 with two doubles.
» The win means Portland secured second place in the conference, earning a bye in the WCC Tournament.
» The Pilots matched their program record for WCC wins in a season with 17. The Pilots set that record last year.
Up Next
The Pilots and Dons finish the regular season tomorrow at 1 p.m. Check PortlandPilots.com for live stats and video.
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