The NightOwls did not want to drop all six games of the 2023 season to the Bells. Luckily, one of the most reliable starters on their staff, Payton Robertson (2.81 ERA), would turn in a high-quality start, getting six innings of work under his belt while only allowing one earned run. To help ensure the game would be kept out of reach, the Owls turned to their best pitcher of the season, Andrew Pinedo. Pinedo was lights out, throwing 88 mph from the left side, The Bells were unable to come up with any answers for him. And that has been much of the case all season for opponents of Pinedo. He has recorded four saves and maintained a 0.00 ERA on the season across 13.1 innings pitched with a 15.1 K/9. 

Elijah Hicks was a problem once again for the Bells in the final game of the series. He made his presence felt in the first at-bat of the game, reaching base with a single and later scoring on an RBI double from Wylie Waters. Elijah Hicks has been playing well all season for the NightOwls and was recently selected in the 19th round of the MLB draft by the Texas Rangers. 

Meanwhile, for the Bells, Riley Parker has remained a threat to opposing teams. In the bottom of the first, he looked to even the score with a double of his own. Unfortunately, later in that same inning, with the bases loaded, he was thrown out on a perfect throw from the Owls right fielder while attempting to score on a sacrifice fly.

Well-played small ball would get the job done for the NightOwls in the 4th inning when a leadoff walk plus a couple of sacrifices gave them an additional run to put them up 2-0. 

Hunter Long came in relief of Everett Swaim in the 5th inning. Things would start out shaky for Long, who hit the leadoff batter, but he settled down and stranded two baserunners without giving up a run.  

The Bells offense woke up in the 5th inning with back-to-back hits from Nate Kirkpatrick and Garner Christensen to get things started. After a well-executed sacrifice bunt by Cole Yoshida, Yohan Dessureault would get the job done, scoring Kirkpatrick to get a run back for the bells.

The game unraveled for the Bells from that point on. After a leadoff home run to start the 6th inning, the Owls went on to score four more runs. Errors and otherwise sloppy play were an issue for the Bells throughout the game, leading to extra base runners and unnecessary stolen bases.

The Bells didn’t go down without a fight. In the 9th inning, the Bells managed to load the bases while bringing in their second run; however, the comeback effort fell short with the game-tying run on deck. 

The Bells head to Longview, Washington, to take on the Cowlitz Black Bears, and they will remain on the road until July 28. Be sure to keep up with the Bells second-half effort here.