The Bellingham Bells defeated the Edmonton Riverhawks 2-0 Wednesday night behind another stellar outing from their ace, Trevin Hope. Hope (3-0) tossed seven innings, giving up three hits and no walks with four strikeouts to earn the win. Cole Hage backed him up with a solo home run in the fourth inning to provide some valuable offense for the Bells.
Jace Phelan scored the first run of the game in the second inning, when he drilled a hard single to left field that went out of play, advancing him to second. Phelan reached third on a wild pitch, then crossed home plate after a wild throw by the Hawks catcher that sailed over their third baseman’s head.
The Bells tacked on one more in the fourth, when Hage swatted a monster solo shot to left field for his third home run of the season.
Brandt Pancer, the Bells’ newest addition out of Stanford, entered the game in the eighth inning for Hope. Pancer notched two strikeouts to complete a strong first outing with the team. Christopher Campos, who started the game at shortstop, closed out the game on the mound, fanning two Hawks batters on his way to earning his third save of the season. Campos had an exceptional night from the plate as well, going 2-4 with a double.
Hawks starter Riley Barrett (1-3) took the loss, allowing two runs in 4.2 innings pitched. Mikiah Negrete threw 3.1 scoreless innings of relief for the team, with just one hit allowed.
The Bells improve to 19-6 with the win, holding a five game lead over the second place NorthPaws, while the Hawks fall to 11-17. The Bells will try to sweep the series Thursday night at Joe Martin Field, in their last game against the Riverhawks before heading to Port Angeles to face the Lefties.