MALIBU, Calif. -- Ben Patacsil collected five hits and Tyler Howard added four more to help power the Portland Pilots past the Pepperdine Waves 23-3 on Friday. It's the second time the Pilots have put up at least 20 runs in a game this year.
Nick Brink (8-4) got the win for Portland (29-17, 14-5). The right-hander went six innings, giving up three runs, all of them earned, on six hits, allowing two walks and striking out five. Brink also became just the fifth Pilot ever to throw at least 100 strikeouts in a single season. Ryan Rembisz also pitched well, going two shutout innings while allowing two hits, walking one and striking out one.
In addition to his five hits, Patacsil had two RBI's to lead the Pilots. Howard added two walks and three RBI's to his four-hit performance as well. Jack Thomson also chipped in for Portland, putting together one hit in three trips to the plate while adding a grand slam, two walks and four RBI's.
Five different Pilots recorded multiple hits in the game, with Zach Toglia batting 3-for-4 with four RBI's and Brady Bean and Jake Holcroft each batting 2-for-5 with an RBI. Holcroft also broke the program record for career runs scored, now sitting at 181 for his career. Spencer Scott and Christian Cooney each added three RBI's as well.
How it Happened
The Pilots scored in six different innings on the way to victory. After giving up three runs early, Portland scored in the third and fourth innings. Holcroft had an RBI single in the third inning and Toglia added another RBI single in the fourth to bring it within one.
Then the bats exploded. The Pilots scored 10 runs in the fifth inning, started by a grand slam courtesy of Thomson. Howard brought in two runs with a single to left field, then Scott added a home run of his home to bring in three more. Patacsil hit an RBI single to end the scoring in the fifth, their highest scoring inning of the year, and make it 12-3 Portland.
The scoring did not stop there. The Pilots added four more runs in the seventh, with three coming off RBI singles from Patacsil, Bean and Howard, to make it 16-3 Portland.
In the eighth inning, the Pilots added four more runs, with two of those coming off a double from Toglia. The Pilots scored the other two runs off a walk and a groundout. Cooney added two RBI's to his total with a double to right center and Tristan Gomes hit the pinch-hit RBI single to settle the score at its final.
Game Notes
» The Pilots got five hits from Patacsil on the day. It is tied for the most hits a Pilot has posted in a single game this year.
» Patacsil is the first Pilot to record at least five hits multiple times in their career since 2005 and just the second ever to do it.
» Brink struck out five Waves hitters on his way to his eighth win. He becomes just the fifth Pilot ever to reach 100 strikeouts in a single season.
» Toglia and Thomson drove in four runs each for Portland.
» Every Portland starter reached base safely in the win.
» Holcroft broke the program record for runs scored in a career, now sitting at 181.
» Portland's highest scoring inning was the fifth, when it pushed 10 runs across. That's the most they've scored in a single inning this year.
» This is the second time the Pilots have scored at least 23 runs in a game this year. Previously, it was the most the Pilots had scored in a game since 1987.
» Five Pilots had multiple hits in the ballgame and five Pilots also had multiple RBI's.
» The Pilots had a total of 22 hits, matching their season high.
» The Pilots out-hit the Waves at a 22-9 clip.
» Portland went 12-for-23 (.522) with runners in scoring position.
» Portland pitchers limited Pepperdine to 0-for-8 with runners in scoring position.
» Portland pitchers faced 38 Pepperdine hitters in the game, allowing seven ground balls and 10 fly balls while striking out seven.
» The Pilots drew 13 walks from Pepperdine pitching.
» This is the fifth straight win for the Pilots and the sixth in seven games.
Up Next
The Pilots take on the Waves tomorrow at 1 p.m. Check PortlandPilots.com for live stats and video options.
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