The Kelowna Falcons defeated the Bellingham Bells 11-6 in 14 innings Sunday afternoon in Joe Martin Field. The Falcons broke the stalemate in 14th with five runs, highlighted by a 3-run shot from Shea Thomas, to avoid the series sweep.
Easton Amundson kicked things off with the second at-bat of the game for the Bells, slamming the 0-2 pitch to right field for a 2-run homer. Kyle Parkman scored, as Amundson hit his first HR with the club. Afterwards, the Bells drew fourth straight walks, as Falcons starter Hiroyuki Yamada walked in Blake Conrad with the bases loaded to put the Bells up 3-0. Later, Malcolm Moore got caught at home trying to tag up from third to end an ugly first inning for the Falcons.
The Bells’ bats went stagnant from there, managing just two hits over the next five innings, before the Falcons surged back in the seventh. CJ Richmond hit a ground-rule double, then scored on another ground-rule double by Griffin Palfrey.
Damian Stone backed them with their third double of the inning to score another Falcon, then Kam Edwards hit a 2-run single to give them the 4-3 lead. Ty Saunders ended the barrage by turning a double play to bring the Bells up to bat, part of a strong fielding game by Saunders.
Parkman led off the bottom of the inning with a single, and Amundson followed with a double, setting up Moore to drive a hard single to left to score Parkman from third and tie the game. The Bells nearly took the game in eighth with runners on second and third, but a pair of flyouts crushed their hopes of finishing before extra innings.
Jeter Ybarra hit a 2-run single to take a 6-4 lead in the 13th, but the Bells responded with RBI singles from Parkman and Moore to tie the game. With the bases loaded and one out, Jaiden Matthews popped up to left, then Amundson got caught at home tagging up from third to end the 13th inning.
The Falcons blew the game open in the 14th, when position players Hunter Komine and Jace Phelan took the mound for the Bells. Jacob Steel hit a 2-run double, then Shea Thomas followed it up with a 3-run HR to left field, giving them a 11-6 lead.
The Bells ended the game by giving their pitchers at-bats, with Trevin Hope, Austyn Coleman, Christopher Foster and Jack Erdman all getting a chance to swing the lumber for a change. Foster was the only one to reach base, drawing a walk.
With the loss, the Bells drop to 27-14, while the Falcons improve to 19-21. The Bells will hit the road for back-to-back series against the Nanaimo NightOwls and Edmonton Riverhawks, before returning for their final home stretch of the regular season.