Herald staff
EUGENE, Ore. — The Everett AquaSox put an emphatic end to the Eugene Emeralds 15-game winning streak on Saturday night, throttling the South Division second-half leaders 12-1 at PK Park, with a ninth-inning sacrifice fly the only blemish on a nearly perfect evening for the kings of the North Division.
Each position player had at least one hit for Everett (17-6 second half) and starting pitcher Matthew Festa (4-2) retired the game’s 14 batters before Trent Giambrone ended the string with a two-out double in the fifth.
Festa allowed just one other hit in his six shutout innings, striking out seven without walking a batter.
Dillon Moyer and Elliot Surrey combined to work the last three innings in relief, and the Emeralds (17-6) were able to avoid the shutout when Marcus Mastrobuoni’s sacrifice fly plated Wladimir Galindo in the ninth inning.
Nick Zammarelli’s RBI single drove in Bryson Brigman in the first inning, and the Sox never took their foot of the gas.
Brigman went 2-for-4 with three runs scored and two stolen bases, Kristian Brito went 2-for-4 with two-run double in the sixth inning and Johmbeyker Morales hit a pinch-hit, three-run homer in place of Zammarelli in the fourth inning.
The Sox scored once in each of the first two innings, twice in the third and four times in the fourth to open a 8-0 advantage on the previously streaking Emeralds.
Bryan Hudson (3-4) suffered the loss on the mound for Eugene, allowing seven earned runs on six hits in 3.2 innings pitched. He struck out five and walked five.
Giambrone had three of Eugene’s six hits in the game, with two singles to go along with the double.
The Emeralds and AquaSox will square off again on Sunday, with first pitch scheduled for 5 p.m.
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