Written by the Raptors Broadcaster Patrick McColl

Under a setting sun with a Canadian breeze coming from the northern water, the Ridgefield Raptors defeated the Port Angeles Lefties in the first two games of the early week series to get their first West Coast League (WCL) series win of the season. Now, Ridgefield will regather after a Thursday night finale with Port Angeles and head to Bend to play the Elks in a three-game series on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Ridgefield (5-8) beat Port Angeles 4-2 in Game 1 of the series. Late reliever Ryan McClaskey earned his second save of the season as he put down the Lefties in short order in the ninth. In Game 2, the Raptors bats exploded for 11 runs, a season high that allowed for a 11-3 Ridgefield win.

The Raptors are paced by Fresno State’s Justin Stransky and Utah Valley’s Luke Iverson, who both have 10 hits this season. Iverson is first on the team in doubles (five) and RBI (six). Stransky is close behind Iverson with five RBI. 

Raptors starter Dylan Stewart has only allowed three runs in 15 innings of work this season. Stewart’s Pepperdine teammate Wyatt Nichol owns 17 strikeouts, the most on the Raptors and eight most in the WCL.

Bend (9-8) has been consistent this season, but the group still sits 4.5 games behind the Corvallis Knights for first place in the South Division of the WCL. The Elks split the first two games of their series against Walla Walla, winning 7-5 in Game 1 but falling 6-5 in Game 2 against the Sweets.

The Elks are led by Portland’s Vinny Salvione offensively. The 5-foot-11 junior owns 15 hits this season and is second on the team in stolen bases (four). A teammate of Salvione at Portland in the spring, Oregon native Jace Miller has hit two home runs. Outfielder Brett Ott’s four doubles lead the Elks.

On the mound, Bend starter Tucker Grote has only allowed three earned runs in 16 innings of work. Cumberland senior Reid Madariaga has only allowed five runs in 14.1 innings, with 13 strikeouts and only six walks to his stat line.

Games 1 and 2 of the road series against Bend are set to begin at 6:35 p.m. Game 3 is scheduled to start at 5:05 p.m. After Sunday’s game, the Raptors will return home to play the Elks in a three-game series that starts on Tuesday, June 25.

Tickets to the upcoming home series against Bend at the RORC are available on ridgefieldraptors.com. The live stream to listen to the games in Bend will be available on ridgefieldraptors.com/stream. #GoRaps