Ems early lead ends in dominating win over Hops

The Emeralds wasted little time jumping on the Hops in Game 5 of their six-game series, and parlayed that early lead into an easy win on Saturday evening, April 27, at PK Park in Eugene.

The Ems scored three runs in the first inning, three more in the third, two in the seventh, and a final one in the eighth, which was more than enough thanks to a combined pitching performance that held the visiting Hops to just five hits.

Eugene starting pitcher Dylan Cumming allowed just two hits while striking out six in four shutout innings, then turned it over to Nick Sinacola who pitched the final five innings, allowing a single earned run on five hits.

Offensively, the Ems had three players tally two hits apiece, in addition to Scott Bandura who went 1-for-3 with three RBI and two runs-scored.

Hillsboro starting pitcher Wyatt Wendell was touched up for three earned runs on six hits, taking the loss.

In one of the few Hops highlights, Andrew Pintar hit a home run in the eighth inning, his second of the year.

Hillsboro will have a chance to earn a split in the series when the two teams meet at 6:05 p.m. on Sunday in the series finale.