Ems Stay Tied Atop South Division Setting Up Chance To Sweep Salem-Keizer

The Eugene Emeralds (12-9, 28-31) will have a chance to sweep the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes (9-12, 35-24) on Friday after handing the visiting Volcanoes a 5-3 loss in front of a sold-out crowd at PK Park on Thursday night.

After a scoreless first inning for both teams, Eugene took the game's first lead in the second thanks to a four-run frame. Grayson Byrd got the inning started by singling on the first pitch he saw, and he was quickly brought around to score on the next at-bat when Jacob Olson looped a double to the left field corner, just evading a diving effort from Volcanoes left fielder Jairo Pomares to give the Ems the 1-0 lead.
After a Connor Nurse wild pitch allowed Olson to advance to third during the next at-bat, Pedro Martinez brought him home with a single to center field, and Jake Washer continued the barrage one batter later with a double down the right field line that scored Martinez and make it 3-0. The Ems added one more before the inning ended thanks to a throwing error from Volcanoes shortstop Marco Luciano on a Josue Huma grounder that allowed Washer to score all the way from third to cap a four-run inning for the Ems.
Salem-Keizer responded with a run in the top of the third thanks to a fielding error from Ems second baseman Chase Strumpf, and they added two more in the sixth after a solo home run from Beicker Mendoza and an RBI single from Jairo Pomares, cutting Eugene's lead to just one run after four and a half innings.
Sadly for Salem-Keizer, that was the closest they got as the Ems added an insurance run in the seventh thanks to an RBI groundout from Fernando Kelli, and closer Riley McCauley shut the door over the final two innings to seal a 5-3 victory and a series win while setting up a chance to sweep the visiting Volcanoes on Friday night.
Jake Washer finished the evening 2-for-3 at the plate with two runs scored and an RBI while Yovanny Cruz, making his first start with the Ems this season, showed excellent stuff at times, finishing the evening with a final line of 4.1 innings pitched, four hits, three runs (two earned), one walk and a season-high seven strikeouts.
With the Hillsboro Hops also winning on Thursday, the two teams stay deadlocked atop the South Division with seventeen regular season games left to go. The Ems and Hops meet for a three-game series starting Tuesday at PK Park, the only time that the two teams will face off for the remainder of the regular season.
The Ems send Chicago Cubs 2019 fifth round selection Josh Burgmann to the mound on Friday for what is Military Appreciation Night, presented by Sports Clips. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05pm PST with the PK Park gates opening at 6:00pm
You can find the full promotional schedule for the 2019 Eugene Emeralds season by visiting www.EmeraldsBaseball.com.
Tickets to Emeralds home games are on sale now at www.EmeraldsBaseball.com or by calling (541) 342-5367.
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