Raptors clinch WCL playoffs on final day

All it took was rebounding from a bad loss the day before, and then have a few other game results fall into place.

The Ridgefield Raptors checked all the boxes on Thursday and clinched a West Coast League playoff berth after a 4-2 10-inning road victory over the Walla Walla Sweets on the final day of the WCL regular season.

Ridgefield (26-22) needed to win Thursday and have the Portland Pickles lose to Port Angeles (which they did), and have the Bend Elks beat South Division champion Corvallis Knights (which they did).

Those same Corvallis Knights will play a best-of-3 series against the Raptors starting at 6:35 p.m. Saturday in Ridgefield. Games 2 and 3 (if necessary) will be at Corvallis on Sunday and Monday.

And amazingly enough, after being shut out on Wednesday 6-0 and striking out 15 times, the Raptors needed just three hits Thursday to beat the Sweets.

The go-ahead runs in the 10th inning scored on a wild pitch and passed ball. Grant Heiser, who was hit by a pitch, eventually scored on a wild pitch with two outs, and Mikey Kane, who had singled, came home on a passed ball.

Ben Larson pitched the final two innings for the win, allowing two hits with four strikeouts, including the final two Sweets batters.

Ridgefield took a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning when Kane singled, and then Tanner Jacques hit a two-out two-run home run. It was just his second home run of the season.

Walla Walla, which stranded 13 base runners, cut the lead in half with a run-scoring single in the sixth inning.

The Sweets would then tie it up on a fielder’s choice in the eighth.

RIDGEFIELD 4, WALLA WALLA 2 (10 INNINGS)

Ridgefield 002 000 000 2—4 3 1

Walla Walla 000 010 010 0—2 8 1

Ridgefield

Pitching — Hunter 5.2 IP, 1 R, 5 H, 6 Ks, 4 BB; Nygard 1.2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 3 K, 1 BB; Schubert 0.2 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 2 BB; Larson 2 IP, win, 0 R, 0 H, 4Ks. Highlights — Jacques 1-4 HR 2RBI 1R; M. Kane 2-4 2R.

Walla Walla

Pitching — Craven 6 IP, 2 R, 2 H, 8 Ks, 3 BB; Ball 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H; Irwin 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 Ks; Hurd 1.2 IP, loss, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 H, 3 Ks, 1 BB; Hernandez 0.1 IP, 0 R, 0 H. Highlights — Ryberg 1-5; Paton 1-4 1R; Folz 1-5; Myro 1R; Ayers 2-2 RBI; Sheward 2-3; Conniff RBI; Grimm 1-2.