Hops Halt Volcanoes Win Streak With 4-3 Win

Salem-Keizer and Hillsboro meet on Friday evening for the rubber match of this three-game series.

Jose Reyes pitched over five innings but surrendered ten hits in Thursday's loss. Photo Courtesy: Salem-Keizer Volcanoes

(HILLSBORO, Ore. ) - Entering Thursday night's contest in Hillsboro, the Volcanoes had taken three consecutive games in thrilling, come-from-behind fashion.

The Hops put an end to Salem-Keizer's improbable stretch by defeating the Volcanoes 4-3 in front of 2,654 at Ron Tonkin Field.

The Volcanoes broke away from their pattern of waiting until late in the game to score by scratching across a run in the top of the first. Tyler Hollick collected his first double of the year and came around to score on an RBI single by Craig Massoni, the Volcanoes leader in RBIs.

Salem-Keizer's 1-0 lead was short-lived as Hillsboro put runs on the scoreboard in the first inning as they have done in every game this season. Volcanoes starter Jose Reyes (0-2, 5.06) surrendered three consecutive singles before a two-out, two-RBI single by catcher Tyler Baker put the Hops in front.

The Volcanoes forced a tie in the ensuing inning after Shilo McCall came around to score on a mishandling of the ball by Hops left fielder Grant Heyman.

Hillsboro reclaimed their lead after posting single tallies in both the fifth and sixth innings, ending Reyes' night.

Down 4-2, Salem-Keizer showed it still had a pulse in the top of the eighth. Fernando Pujadas lined a single into center field to score Shilo McCall and pull the Volcanoes within a run. A baserunning mistake earlier in the inning by T Relaford cost the Volcanoes an opportunity to tie. Salem-Keizer could not get another timely hit to push the tying run across.

Hops closer Zac Curtis navigated the ninth without issue as the Volcanoes dropped back under 0.500 on the season.

Despite committing two errors, the Hops' defense put forth some highlight-worthy plays over the course of the game to keep the Volcanoes in check. Perhaps the most noteworthy defensive play came from Heyman in left field, who compensated for an earlier error with a gold-glove catch at the outfield fence to rob Geno Escalante of an extra-base hit.

Eight of the nine starters in the Salem-Keizer lineup notched base hits, totaling ten hits as a team. However, it was the first time since July 24, 2012 that the Volcanoes struck for ten or more hits but could not score more than three runs.

Reyes pitched nearly six innings for the Volcanoes, surrendering ten hits in the longest outing for a Salem-Keizer pitcher this season.

Up Next: Salem-Keizer and Hillsboro meet on Friday evening for the rubber match of this three-game series. The Volcanoes will send lefty Nick Gonzalez (0-1, 5.79) to the mound to face Hillsboro starter Anderson Placido (1-0, 0.00). You can catch all the action on 1490 AM KBZY (http://www.kbzy.com) with a 6:05 p.m. pregame show in advance of a 7:05 p.m. first pitch from Ron Tonkin Field.

Source: Salem-Keizer Volcanoes