Elks suffer first loss in Walla Walla series finale

The Elks saw a late lead slip away forcing them to miss out on their first sweep of the season. (Sage Young)

Bend, OR - The Bend Elks couldn't complete the Opening Weekend sweep of the Walla Walla Sweets, surrendering six unanswered runs over the final two innings, causing the Elks to fall in the series finale 10-6 Sunday at Vince Genna Stadium.

Bend (2-1, 2-1) took a two-run lead with a three-spot in the seventh, only to watch it wither away when Walla Walla (1-2, 1-2) responded with five runs in the eighth to reclaim the lead in a matter of moments. Former Summit High standout Zach Reynolds (0-1) was dealing through the middle innings, retiring nine straight batters through the first third of the eighth. But a base hit and two hit batters later loaded the bases for Sweets leadoff man Davis Mauzy, who plopped a bloop single into right that later was bobbled by Ryan Christiansen, allowing three runs to come across.

Self inflicted wounds proved to be costly theme in the Elks first loss of the summer as Bend committed five total errors including a dropped fly ball by Dylan Edwards in the ninth that enabled Walla Walla to tack on its 10th run and deliver the final blow to the Elks hopes of sweeping the Sweets for the first time since 2018.

Walla Walla combined for more runs and one less hit (15) on Sunday than the first two games of the series combined. Seven of the sweets' 10 tallies were accounted for by the bottom third of the lineup.

Similarly, Bend had five of its six runs scored by players in the back half of the order. Former Bend High Lava Bear Kaleb Karpstein accounted for two of the Elks' five hits, while Andrew Guidara was responsible for half of the Elks' six runs.

Bend will look to bounce back on Tuesday at Vince Genna Stadium in a massive early season series against the seven-time reigning West Coast League Champions Corvallis Knights. Bend was the last team not named the Knights to win the West Coast League crown when it claimed its one and only title in franchise history in 2015.