Benny Montgomery late homer not enough, Spokane Indians lose to Eugene 13-8

The Spokane Indians dug a pretty deep hole on Friday, falling behind by four runs in the middle innings. Despite a furious comeback attempt, the deficit proved to be too arduous a task.

Benny Montgomery hit a late home run to draw the Indians within a run, but the Eugene Emeralds rallied for four runs in the ninth inning and held on to beat the Indians 13-8 at Avista Stadium.

Eugene’s Edison Mora, the No. 9 hitter in the Emeralds order, hit a two-run double and Brett Auerbach added a two-run single off reliever Tyler Ahearn in the ninth.

Ahearn allowed four runs on four hits and three walks in the inning.

The Indians (32-28) fell two games behind Vancouver, which won earlier in the day, in the race for the Northwest League first-half title with five games to play.

Mora finished 2 for 4 with four RBIs. In the first four games of the series, Mora is 6 for 13 with two homers and six RBIs, raising his average to .204. Victor Bericoto hit his 13th home run of the season and Carter Howell knocked in three for Eugene, which improved to 31-30 and leads the six-game series 3-1.

Indians starter Jaden Hill struck out six in three-plus innings, but he allowed five earned runs on five hits and three walks. He threw 71 pitches, 44 for strikes.

Hill struck out the first two batters of the game, but he walked Howell on a full count and Bericoto homered to straightaway center .

Eugene starter Eric Silva found similar trouble. He walked Indians leadoff batter Adael Amador, Montgomery reached on an infield single and both moved up on a wild pitch, Amador scored on a groundout and Jordan Beck’s RBI single tied it at 2.

The Indians broke that tie in the second on back-to-back doubles by Nic Kent and AJ Lewis. Kent extended his hitting streak to 11 games.

Hill got two more strikeouts in the third, but a double, walk and Adrian Sugastey’s RBI single tied it at 3.

The first two batters reached against Hill in the fourth on a walk and double, ending his evening. Reliever Anderson Bido gave up Mora’s two-run double and the Indians fell behind 5-3.

Eugene picked up two more runs on a groundout and wild pitch to make it 7-3. It stayed that way – thanks to three scoreless innings of relief by the Indians Mason Green – until the bottom of the seventh, when Lewis led off the frame with a solo home run, his third of the season.

With two down, Yanquiel Fernandez and Beck walked then Zach Kokoska doubled high off the wall in right to plate a run and draw the Indians within two.

After a 10-minute delay due to the left field lighting bank going dark, Angel Chivilli took over on the mound for the Indians and he allowed a triple and walk to put runners at the corners. With two down, Howell singled through a drawn-in infield and both runners scored to make it 9-5.

The Indians rallied with two down in the bottom half. Lewis walked and Amador doubled him home. Montgomery followed with a homer to left center to make it a one-run game.