Ninth-Inning Rally Comes up Short as Hops Fall to Indians 6-3

Hillsboro, Ore- Last night the Hops had a season high 17 hits, but tonight the Spokane pitching would hold them at bay. Early home runs from Avery Owusu-Asiedu for Hillsboro and Tommy Hopfe for Spokane set the tone, but the Hillsboro late-inning rally came up short in the 6-3 loss.

Avery Owusu-Asiedu set the tone early for Hillsboro, launching a 397-foot solo homer to left-center to give the Hops a quick 1–0 lead. His first home run as a Hop was also his first home run in the Diamondbacks organization. Spokane starter Jordy Vargas settled in after that, but the early deficit forced the Indians to play catch-up.

Spokane answered early in the second after Kevin Fitzer was hit by a pitch and Kelvin Hidalgo singled. Tommy Hopfe delivered the first big swing for Spokane, blasting a two-run homer to right-center to tie the game at 2–2. The impressive home run was 109 MPH off the bat and gave the Indians a 2-1 lead. After the home run, John West recorded nine straight outs. His four pitch fourth inning was capped off by a web gem sliding play where he went down to a knee and quickly popped up to his feet to throw out Kelvin Hildago and end the inning.

Meanwhile, Jordy Vargas struck out the side in three straight innings and kept Hillsboro off the board.

The Indians broke things open in the fifth inning with their most productive frame of the night. A string of hits and walks, including singles from Juan Castillo and Caleb Hobson loaded the bases and set up the rally. A wild pitch brought in a run and Ethan Hedges followed with an RBI single to cap the inning, pushing Spokane in front and giving them control of the game. The Hops did get an inning-ending double play to avoid further damage.

From there, Logan Mercado kept Spokane quiet through the middle innings. Mercado was dominant over three frames, striking out six batters.

The Hops managed scattered baserunners but couldn’t string together the big hit, as Spokane carried its lead into the late innings.

Things got interesting again in the ninth. Spokane added valuable insurance in the top half of the inning. Caleb Hobson and Tevin Tucker keyed the rally, with Tucker driving in a run on a single to center. Kevin Fitzer later drew a walk that brought in another run, extending the Indians’ lead and giving them breathing room.

To no surprise, Hillsboro refused to go quietly. In the bottom of the ninth, the Hops mounted a furious comeback against Spokane relievers. Trent Youngblood ignited the rally with a bunt single, and Yerald Nin followed with another hit to put pressure on the defense. Brady Counsell then came through with an RBI single and Modeifi Marte added another run-scoring knock to center, suddenly cutting the deficit and bringing the tying run into play.

With the momentum shifting, Spokane turned to Francis Rivera to close it out. After the Hops pushed across multiple runs, Rivera finally slammed the door, striking out Wallace Clark swinging to end the game and preserve the win.

The three game Hillsboro win streak came to a close on Saturday night as the two teams get ready to meet in the series finale. First pitch is tomorrow at 1:05 with the pregame show starting at 12:50 on Rip City Radio 620 and Bally Live.