EVERETT — The Tri-City Dust Devils needed five hours and 16 innings to hold off the Everett AquaSox 2-1 in the first game of the best-of-three Northwest League North Division playoff series that began Monday night and ended early Tuesday.
The series shifts to Pasco tonight, where the second half champion AquaSox will take on the first half champion Dust Devils at 7:15 p.m. The series winner will play either Hillsboro or Salem-Keizer of the South Division in the league championship series later this week. Salem-Keizer defeated Hillsboro 4-2 in the first game of that series Monday.
The Dust Devils broke the deadlock in the top of the 16th. Austin Allen hit a ground ball that hit the first base bag and bounced up in the air for a single. Henry Charles followed with a double off the fence in right center, and Kodie Tidwell slapped an 0-2 offering to left field to score pinch-runner Mason Smith with what proved the game-winning run.
Tri-City pitchers retired 13 straight hitters following a walk to Logan Taylor with two outs in the eighth. Corey Simpson broke the streak with a leadoff single up the middle leading off the bottom of the 13th.
Playing in its first playoff game since 2013, Everett (42-34 regular season, 20-18 second half) struck first against Tri-City (42-34, 20-18).
The AquaSox broke through in the bottom of the fifth despite a baseball not leaving the infield. Corey Simpson worked a one-out walk, and Jordan Cowan followed with an infield single that the Tri-City shortstop threw past the first baseman. Simpson and Cowan wound up on second and third, respectively.
Drew Jackson then hit what appeared to be a tailor-made double play ball to short, but the Tri-City second baseman’s throw to first was also wide which allowed Simpson to score for the 1-0 lead.
The Dust Devils drew even with some clutch two-out hitting in the seventh. Carlos Belen led off with a single, stole second, went to third on a passed ball and scored when Kodie Tidwell’s line drive to left eluded the leaping Jackson at short.
Everett stranded 11 runners in the game, including the winning run at third base in both the 13th and 14th innings. The AquaSox also finished 0-for-14 with runners in scoring position.
Tri-City starter Brett Kennedy had a part in that. Kennedy fanned seven Everett hitters in his four-inning stint, including three straight in the second to strand Alex Jackson, who led off with a double.
Jordan Cowan led off Everett’s third with a double the opposite way down the left field line. He stole third, but was doubled off on Erick Mejia’s soft liner to short to end the inning.
Everett starter Andrew Moore allowed a one-out walk followed by a hit in the second, but struck out one hitter and induced a foul popup to end the inning. He stranded two more in the third with a tapper back to the mound and a strikeout.
Wilson Santos earned the win in relief for Tri-City. Joey Strain took the loss for Everett.
Notes
Luiz Gohara (3-7, 6.20 ERA) will take the mound for Everett Tuesday in Pasco. He will be opposed by Joel Linares (0-2, 7.02) … Everett outfielder Braden Bishop, a former University of Washington star who was a Northwest League postseason all-star, is done for the year after injuring a rib.
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