Hawks drop season opener in Eugene, 5-4

EUGENE, Ore. - Cory Spangenberg walked with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth inning, forcing in the go-ahead run, as the Eugene Emeralds rallied for a 5-4 victory over the Boise Hawks at P.K. Park.

The Ems rallied from 2-0 and 4-1 deficits on the night, taking advantage of a Boise error in the sixth inning to tie the game, then a pair of walks in the eighth to bring home the winner.

The Hawks got on the board in the first, as Vismeldy Bieneme walked, stole second, and with two outs, scored on a wild pitch on a walk to Paul Hoilman. Yaniel Cabezas followed with an RBI double - the lone hit Boise would register in the first seven innings.

Eugene would make it 2-1 in the second on a Lee Orr sacrifice fly, but Boise would take advantage of five-straight two out walks in the third, including bases-loaded free passes to Reggie Golden and Wes Darvill, pushing the lead to 4-1.

Trailing 4-2 in the sixth, Daniel Garce reached on a error, helping Eugene load the bases with no outs. Jeremy Rodriguez would walk to force home a run and a Jace Peterson sacrifice fly tied the score.

Boise had a chance with two outs in the eighth, as Golden reached on an infield hit and Darvill doubled, but D.J. Fitzgerald flew out to end the threat. The Emeralds responded in the bottom of the frame, as a two out single by Rodriguez and an infield hit by Clint Moore chased reliever Jose Rosario, with Hector Mayora walking both Peterson and Spangenberg to plate the winning run.

Moore went 3-for-4 with two doubles in the win for the Ems, while Ben Wells was solid on the mound for the Hawks, going five innings of five hit ball, allowing just two runs.

Game 2 of the series is Saturday night, with Yao-Lin Wang going for Boise opposite Matt Andriese at 8:05 p.m. (MT)

NOTES: The Chicago Cubs made a roster move prior to the game, assigning catcher Chad Noble to the Hawks. Noble played three games with the Hawks last season after signing out of Northwestern. Boise now has 27 men on their roster, including three catchers. Attendance was 3,352 - including YouTube sensation, Domingo Ayala.