CALDWELL, Idaho – For years, the "Rally Train" has been a fixture at College of Idaho outdoor events. Trailing 11-8 in the bottom of the ninth inning, the legend of the "Rally Train" struck again, as the Coyotes scored four runs, capped by a
Matthew Clay walk-off single, to complete a four-game sweep of Eastern Oregon at Wolfe Field.
The Yotes (7-4) ran their win streak to six games, riding nine pitchers and a pair of big
Austin Van Horne hits to a 6-1 Game 1 victory, before rallying for the 12-11 victory in the nightcap.
The visiting Mountaineers (0-4) battled back from an 8-5 deficit, taking the lead in the eighth inning after a two-run double from Brooks Dyer and an RBI ground out from Trevor Curl.
However, it wasn't enough – as the Union Pacific train rolled beyond the outfield wall – Van Horne reached on a dropped third strike to start the ninth.
Ben Dudley and
Dillon Danner would each walk to load the bases, with Van Horne scoring on a wild pitch to cut the margin to 11-9. Pinch-hitter
Tanner Leaf would follow, ripping a line drive into the snow bank in center field, legging out a 2-strike, 2-run triple to tie the score.
C of I would reload the bases with 2-outs, setting the table for Clay, who hit a slow-roller to second – legging out the infield single to set off a celebration.
The teams traded big innings throughout the game, as EOU took advantage of three first inning Coyote errors to plate two runs, with C of I answering with a 5-run second, as
Dillon Danner and
Cameron Goetz had RBI singles and
Carter Vieira gapped a 2-run triple. Eastern would get even in the fifth on a Payton Hamilton 2-run single, but Van Horne doubled home a pair in the fifth and added an RBI infield single in the sixth to give C of I the 8-5 lead.
Jonah Hultberg went 4-for-5 in the win, with Van Horne and Vieira each going 3-for-5 – as
Wyatt Hankard picking up his first win of the season in relief.
Van Horne and the pitching staff was the story in Game 1 – as the senior belted a 2-run homer in the first inning to stake C of I to a lead and jumpstarted an eighth inning rally with an RBI double.
Nine different pitchers each threw a predetermined one inning in the victory – combining to allow just seven hits and striking out 12 batters. Starter
Hunter Kirkpatrick earned his third win of the season, striking out two in his inning of work; both
Ben Tighe and
Jared Bowman each fanned a pair; while
Erik Wisenor struck out the side in the ninth to close out the win.
Hultberg, Leaf and Van Horne each had two hits for the Yotes, with Easton Watterson going 3-for-4 in the loss for EOU.
C of I returns to action on Friday, hosting Northwest Nazarene for a 3 p.m. doubleheader.
NOTES:
- The Coyotes 6-game win streak is their longest win streak since winning 10-straight during the 2016 season
- Hultberg recorded his third 3-hit game in the 4-game set, finishing the series 12-for-18
- C of I scored 10-or-more runs for the fifth time this season, while posting their seventh game with 10-or-more hits
- The game was played with the warning track filled with a 5-foot-tall snow drift from this past weekend's storm
- The two wins extended the Yotes win streak against Eastern to 14-games, dating back to the 2005 season
