Indians Fall Short in Extras to Hops

SPOKANE, Wash. - The Indians were one out away from their fourth-straight victory to start the second half, but faltered in the ninth and wound up losing 6-4 in 11 innings to the Hillsboro Hops on Friday night. A crowd of 6,842 Indians fan enjoyed Fireworks Night presented by MultiCare and 92.9 ZZU.

Francisco Ventura got the Indians on the board in the second inning with a solo shot to left field to tie the game at one apiece. Ventura has hit five homers in his last nine games.
With the score still tied in the sixth, Spokane struck with another Redband Rally. For the second straight night, Ribby the Redband Trout came running in from left field and the Indians came running across home plate. Tanner Gardner drove in Diosbel Arias with an RBI double to give Spokane a 2-1 lead. Gardner later scored on an RBI ground out from Ventura and Spokane had a 3-1 lead after six. It's the sixth time this season at Avista Stadium that Spokane has put up a crooked number right after Ribby makes an appearance.
Those two runs put Ryan Dease in line for a victory. Dease worked around trouble all night and was able to grind through six innings, allowing one run and striking out six.
Spokane added on in the seventh when Julio Pablo Martinez knocked in Scott Kapers with an RBI single to left. Martinez also walked twice, increasing his walk total to 21 on the season, good for third in the NWL.
Scott Chandler pitched two perfect innings for the Indians to get the game to the ninth. But Hillsboro got a rally of their own going and scored three runs in the ninth on two hits and two errors to tie the game at four.
Each team had a chance in the 10^th, but neither side capitalized. Hillsboro broke the tie in the 11^th with two runs and Spokane couldn't respond, dropping their first game of the second half.
Jax Biggers' 11-game hitting streak came to an end. The former Arkansas Razorback went 0-for-5. On the other side, Hillsboro outfielder Jake McCarthy extended his hitting streak to 15 games, matching the longest in the NWL this season.
The Indians look to bounce back tomorrow night against the Hillsboro Hops for Fireworks Night presented by Your Local Toyota Dealers, KEY 101, and 94.1 The Bear. It's round two of fireworks at Avista Stadium, with the show beginning immediately following the game. Plus, your BINGO card as you enter the stadium to participate in Coeur d'Alene Casino Baseball B-I-N-G-O. The game will also be broadcast live on SWX. The game starts at 6:30 PM with gates opening at 5:30 PM. Tickets for all Spokane Indians home games are available to purchase at the Avista Stadium Ticket Office or at spokaneindians.com. Reserve your seats today by calling (509) 343-OTTO (6886) or TicketsWest at 1-800-325-SEAT.