AquaSox fall to Hops 5-2 in season opener
Published 1:30 am Friday, June 15, 2018
EVERETT — The Hillsboro Hops scored the game’s first five runs and held on to defeat the Everett AquaSox 5-2 in the Northwest League opener before 4,003 fans on Friday at Everett Memorial Stadium.
Kenny Hernandez (1-0) earned the win on the mound for the Hops (1-0). He scattered three hits and did not walk a batter while fanning six in five innings.
Wesley Roberts worked around a leadoff single in the ninth to earn his first save.
Max Roberts (0-1) took the loss for Everett (0-1). He also fanned six in four innings.
The Hops used the long ball to take a 3-0 lead in the top of the third inning. Tra Holmes hit a two-run home run to left field for a 2-0 lead, and one out later, Joey Rose added a solo shot to nearly the same spot for the three-run advantage.
Hillsboro pushed the lead to 5-0 against reliever David Ellingson when Francis Martinez doubled in Rose and Andy Yerzy.
Jansiel Rivera got one back for Everett in the bottom of the sixth with a long home run on to the grassy berm in right field to make it 5-1.
Ryan Garcia cut it to 5-2 with a solo home run to right leading off the bottom of the seventh for Everett.
That was all for the scoring.
Yerzy had three hits and Rose had a pair of hits and scored twice to lead the Hops.
The teams play the second of their season-opening five-game series at 7:05 p.m. on Saturday.
