Linn-Benton baseball (35-10) defeated Everett (31-14) on a walk-off Friday night as a Jordan Hockett sacrifice fly scored Cameron Ordway in the bottom of the ninth inning. As Hockett slid into home base, the Beaks dugout rushed Longview’s David Story Field to celebrate.
With the 4-3 win, the Beaks advance to the third round of the NWAC Championship Tournament as one of two remaining teams in the winner’s bracket.
Unlike Linn-Benton’s 1-0 victory over Lower Columbia on Thursday, scoring started early on Friday, with the Trojans getting on the scoreboard first when a single scored Carson Burns in the top of the first inning.
Linn-Benton tied things up in the bottom of the third, with a Spencer Sullivan single scoring Aidan Dougherty. Both offenses quieted down for the next three innings, until both the Beaks and Trojans scored one each in the seventh and eighth innings, entering the pivotal ninth with a tight 3-3 ballgame.
Pitcher Gabe Brabec played the first seven innings for the Beaks, striking out seven batters and allowing five hits. Brody McMullen and Easton Corey finished the game for Linn-Benton, with Corey allowing no hits in the final one and a third innings played.
Hockett ended the thriller in dramatic fashion, shooting a fly ball into right field in the bottom of the ninth. The ball was caught, Ordway tagged up and sprinted home, and an off-target throw to the catcher guaranteed the Beaks’ victory.
Six teams now remain in the tournament as the league’s best inch closer to a championship berth on Memorial Day. Linn-Benton will face Tacoma on Saturday, May 25 at 5:35 p.m. in Longview. The Titans (36-8-1), the NWAC West’s top seed, have dominated the tournament up to this point, defeating Edmonds 11-0 in Friday’s 4:35 p.m. game.
As both Tacoma and Linn-Benton are undefeated up to this point in the tournament, neither team will face elimination on Saturday.
