Ogden Raptors rally to top Glacier 7-6, winning 3rd straight
BRIAN WOLFER, Special to the Standard-Examiner
An Ogden Raptors helmet sits in a dugout cubby during a game July 11, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.The Ogden Raptors combined clutch hitting with more strong bullpen pitching to rally for a 7-6 victory Friday against the Glacier Range Riders, taking the third straight game in the series in Kalispell, Montana, and winning the team’s fourth in the last five games.
Both starting pitchers took no-hitters through several innings before opposing bats blasted through for multiple runs.
Chris Macca held Glacier (10-6) hitless through four innings for Ogden (5-11), but three first-inning walks led to an RBI groundout to give the home team a 1-0 lead.
Four of Glacier’s six hits for the game came in the fifth inning. After Macca started the fifth with a strikeout, three Range Riders broke up the no-hitter with two singles followed by a three-run homer from Christian Kirtley for a 4-0 lead.
Nick Zegna allowed no hits for Glacier through five innings but Raptors infielder Raymond Gil homered for the second straight night to lead off the top of the sixth, dramatically ending that no-hitter.
That was the first of five hits for Ogden in the sixth, and RBI doubles from Chris Sargent, Nick Ultsch and Landen Barns tied the game 4-4.
The teams traded single runs for the next four half-innings. A Chad Castillo RBI double for Glacier put the home team up 5-4 in the sixth, Ogden answered with another Sargent RBI double in the seventh for a 5-5 knot, Glacier added an RBI groundout for a 6-5 lead after seven, and Ogden’s Matthew Golda singled home Parker DePasquale to make it 6-6 in the eighth.
The Raptors stop the trading there. In the bottom of the eighth, Bruce Yamamoto issued a leadoff walk before recording two outs. With a runner on second, Ogden closer Quinn Waterhouse entered and struck out Castillo to end the threat.
Jack Cone singled to lead off the top of the ninth and took second on a groundout. Sargent took first on an intentional walk and Ultsch delivered on Glacier’s bet with a single to score Cone for a 7-6 lead. Ogden hit 7 of 16 (.438) with runners in scoring position.
Mason Dinesen singled with one out to get the tying run aboard for the Range Riders in the bottom of the ninth, then stole second. Waterhouse then induced a flyout and recorded Ogden’s 10th pitching strikeout to end the game. Glacier finished 2 of 13 (.154) with runners in scoring position.
Sargent, Ultsch and Barns each had two hits for Ogden. Christian Griffin, Yamamoto and Waterhouse combined to allow one hit over the final three innings.
The Raptors go for a series win in the fifth of the six-game series at 7:05 p.m. Saturday.