Elks Have a Bitter Ending to a Sweet Season
The Elks will try to wipe away a distasteful ending to this season at Vince Genna in 2024. (Andrew Green)
Longview, WA - The Bend Elks were dealt a tough pill to swallow by the Cowlitz Black Bears Sunday, who walked off the Elks 7-6 with four runs in the bottom of the ninth to leave Bend with a bitter taste in their final game of the season.
Leading 6-3 going needing just three outs to secure the victory, Elijah Rogalski couldn’t lock it down for Bend (28-30, 25-29) in the ninth, giving up four consecutive hits to start the frame, followed by a hit batter and two bases-loaded walks to end the game. It was the first time that the Elks had blown a multi-run in the ninth this season. Cowlitz (33-21) became just the second team to walk off Bend this season, with the other two occasions coming against Ridgefield on the road.
Bend finished the regular season with a 28-30 overall record and a 25-29 record in West Coast League play. The Elks finished under .500 for the sixth time over the last seven seasons and missed out on the playoffs for the seventh consecutive season since capturing the WCL title in 2015.
The Elks controlled their fate for the majority of the contest getting a great final outing for Tucker Grote, who finished his summer with the best ERA in the WCL at 1.57 after going three innings over scoreless work with two strikeouts retiring nine of the 12 batters he faced. The pitcher with the next closest ERA to Grote was Edmonton’s Riley Barrett, with a 1.73. Grote pitched the most innings of any Elks hurler this summer with 45 ⅔ IP.
While Grote was on the bump, Bend brought one support run across in the second on a string of three straight two-out knocks capped off by an infield RBI single by Hunter Komine. The Black Bears pulled even on a Max Ortega one-run double in the fourth. The Elks caught their big break in the sixth, putting up a crooked four spot on Wilson Weber, Ryan Christiansen, and Trey Nelson RBI knocks, plus a sac fly by Komine. Bend then had a pair of miscues on the mound that allowed the Cowitz to score a couple of runs with a balk that scored a run in the sixth and a wild pitch in the seventh. Yet even with a commanding three-run lead going into the final frame, the Elks couldn’t hold up, falling in their season finale for the second straight season.
Despite the brutal ending, the Elks 2023 campaign was one to remember. Bend had the most walk-offs (6) and extra-inning victories (4) in the West Coast League. The Elks finished with the most home runs (21) and second most hits (467) and runs (327) in the WCL South Division. Luca Dipaolo led the WCL with 17 doubles and was the Elks batting champion at a .328 clip over 32 games.
Bend had 64 players suit up for the Elks this summer, including 11 who played from start to finish. To every single one of them, our five coaches, Joey Wong, Danny Sales, Danny Grice, Tyler Hollow, and Cole Stringer, staff, and most importantly, our fans, we say thank you for being a part of a memorable season of Bend Elks Baseball. See you in 2024 to celebrate our 25 year anniversary!
