BATS GO WILD IN BLOWOUT OF IDAHO FALLS

IDAHO FALLS, ID - Entering the first intra-division series of the season for all Pioneer League teams, the Idaho Falls Chukars held a three-game lead over the Missoula Osprey in the North division.
After three games against South-leading Ogden, the Chukars have fallen into a tie with Missoula.
The Raptors hammered the ball early and often Friday night and cruised to a third-straight victory over the Chukars in Idaho Falls, 18-1.
With the win and Grand Junction's loss to Great Falls, Ogden improved their lead in the South to six games over the Rockies with 12 to play in the first half for a magic number of seven. That means a total of seven Raptors wins and/or Rockies losses will clinch the first-half title for Ogden.
For the first time in the series, the Raptors scored in the first. Marco Hernandez and Zac Ching lined two-out RBI singles to score Sauryn Lao and Ryan Ward, respectively.
In the second, Brandon Wulff doubled and the bases were loaded on a Moises Perez hit-by-pitch and Justin Yurchak walk. Lao hit a sacrifice fly before Ward lined a triple to plate two. Andrew Shaps completed the four-run rally with a double scoring Ward.
The fourth inning was when the Raptors busted the game open, as the first nine batters all reached base safely. Lao walked and Ward reached on a pop fly single. Shaps was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Hernandez, who coaxed a walk to force in a run. After a pitching change, Ching lined a single to center, Titus singled to left, Wulff walked and Perez singled to left, all driving in single runs. Yurchak then pulled a hit to right that scored two and run the inning's total to seven runs, and the game to 13-0 in favor of Ogden.
A Perez fielder's choice and Yurchak infield hit scored another pair in the fifth. In the sixth inning, Shaps crushed a one-out solo homer - his first professional blast - and Hernandez and Ching reached before scoring on a Titus double to right-center to make it 18-0.
The only Chukars run scored on a bases-loaded walk in the sixth. Kevin Malisheski started and went five innings to earn his third win. He gave up three hits and struck out seven while working around runners in scoring position every inning.
On the night, Ogden went an astonishing 10-for-25 with runners in scoring position and still left 12 runners on base, while Idaho Falls was 0-for-16 with runners in scoring position while leaving 13. Ogden's 19 hits represented a single-game high for the team in 2019, though the 18 runs are one short of their high of 19, accomplished twice. The 17-run win was the biggest of the season for the visitors.
The Raptors go for the sweep of Idaho Falls Saturday night at 7:15 before heading to Missoula for four games.