RIDGEFIELD — The Ridgefield Raptors are confident bunch right now. And it just seems like the breaks have been falling their way this summer.
“Ah, It’s baseball,” right field Trent Prokes said. “You’ve got to expect everything.”
Nick Seamons turned a misplayed fly ball to right into a one-out triple, then Prokes followed with a sharp single to right to score Seamons, sending the Raptors a 5-4 win over the Bellingham Bells in 11 innings Sunday at the Ridgefield Outdoor Recreation Center.
Bellingham right fielder Max Hartman fought the sun to make the first out of the 11th inning on a fly ball off the bat of Jackson Nicklaus.
Seamons followed with a similar fly ball to right along the foul line. But this time, the ball fell untouched and Seamons hustled his way to third base.
That set the stage for Prokes against a drawn-in infield. He connected on a 2-1 pitch.
“I was just looking to hit the ball anywhere, put it in play and score the run,” Prokes said. “We had a runner on third with one out. I had to do something.”
The RBI single completed a 3-for-4 game for Prokes.
“I felt really good today,” Prokes said. “I felt really relaxed in the box, confident that everything was there. I was just trying to make the best of it.”
The win completed a three-game sweep for the Raptors in a weekend matchup of the first-half champions of the West Coast League’s Southern and Northern Divisions.
After a day off Monday, the two teams will meet again for three games in Bellingham starting Tuesday.
Three moments
Prokes helped the Raptors rally from a 4-2 deficit in the eighth inning when he drove in Seamons with an RBI double then later scored on Jake Tsukada’s sacrifice fly.
The Raptors had a chance to take the lead in the eighth when they had the bases loaded with one out. But Tristan Gomes popped out to shallow left field and Corey Nunez struck out looking.
Jake Tsukada hustled his way the Raptors’ second run in the fifth, when he beat out an infield single, stole second, took third on a wild pitch then scored when the throw to third went into left field.
Three players
Trent Prokes — The right fielder from Modesto Junior College went 3 for 4 with a run, double, two RBI and two walks.
Jake Tsukada — The third basemen from Hawaii went 3 for 5 with a run, RBI and two stolen bases.
Sawyer Allen — After allowing an unearned run in the eighth inning on a two-out error, Allen kept the Bells quiet in the ninth and 10th innings to keep the Raptors in the game.
Three numbers
4 — Strikeouts recorded in three innings by Heritage graduate Eastyn Culp for the Raptors.
4 — Stolen bases recorded by the Raptors — two by Tsukada and one each from Nunez and Jackson Nicklaus.
4-2 — Record of the Raptors on the homestand. The Raptors return home next week to host the Yakima Valley Pippins.
RIDGEFIELD 5, BELLINGHAM 4 — BOX SCORE
