Aeverson Arteaga walks it off against Everett

The Eugene Emeralds defeated the Everett Aquasox by a final score of 6-5. Aeverson Arteaga walked it off with a solo home run to win game 1 of the series. The Emeralds now move to 22-17 on the season and have a half game lead for 1st place in the Northwest League.

The Aquasox struck first tonight in the ballgame. Harry Ford started the game with a walk and was able to reach 3rd base with 1 out in the top of the 1st. Tyler Locklear was able to hit a single and drive in Ford. Nick Sinacola was able to work out of a tough jam after there were multiple runners on.

In the 2nd inning Everett was able to do some damage and add onto their lead. The first couple of batters were able to reach base to get the inning going. Alberto Rodriguez stepped up to the plate and was able to connect with a baseball for a 3-run home run to extend the lead to 4-0. Tyler Locklear who had an RBI-Single in the first came back up to bat and was able to hit a solo home run to give the Aquasox the 5-0 lead in the 2nd inning.

Eugene was able to answer back in the 3rd inning and cut into the deficit. The bottom of the order was able to get on and Aeverson Arteaga stepped into the box. He was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and Ghordy Santos scored. After a wild pitch Damon Dues was able to score to cut the lead to 5-2. A couple of batters later Logan Wyatt was able to drive a baseball over the infield’s head and Grant McCray was able to score. The Ems still trailed the Aquasox 5-3 heading into the 4th inning.

In the bottom of the 4th inning the Emeralds continued to cut into the deficit. Jimmy Glowenke reached base via hit and was able to advance to 2nd. Damon Dues was able to drive the ball through the infield and Glowenke turned on the burners and scored. Ghordy Santos was able to advance to third on the play. Grant McCray hit a ball to the center fielder who got a running start on the catch. Ghordy Santos was able to tag up and score and tie the game up at 5-5 in the 4th.

The game slowed down in a big way through the rest of the ballgame. Both teams pitching dominated as it was 4 consecutive scoreless frames. Matt Olsen and Joe Kemlage pitched the 4 frames and allowed just 1 hit and struck out 3 batters. They didn’t walk a single batter. It was a dominant performance from the pitchers and they kept the Emeralds in the ballgame.

In the bottom of the 9th with nobody on, Aeverson Arteaga was able to hit a walk-off homerun to give the Emeralds the 6-5 win. Arteaga has been on a tear in the past games, with a homer and a grand slam against the Hops last weekend. It was a bigtime hit for Arteaga and he delivered in the biggest moment.

Tyler Myrick earned the win tonight. He pitched a scoreless top of the 9th inning to send the Emeralds to the bottom of the 9th tied up. It was his first win of the season and his ERA now sits at a 1.23 ERA. He’s been dominant this year and it was great to see him bounce back after a couple of balls didn’t bounce his way in his last outing against the Hillsboro Hops.

Myrick continues to deliver in the clutch this year.

This win now propels Emeralds into sole possession of first place in the Northwest League after Vancouver and Spokane split a double header earlier this afternoon. Matt Mikulski will be on the bump for Eugene tomorrow as they’ll look to win their 2nd straight game against the Aquasox.