The Ogden Raptors rallied from behind to twice tie the Idaho Falls Chukars on Sunday afternoon only to lose in their first Knockout Round home run derby of the season.

Karl Koerper won the game in third round of the Knockout derby for Idaho Falls after an 8-8 regulation nine innings, earning a six-game series split for the Chukars in a week where the visitors and Ogden traded wins each day.

Ogden outfielder Brian Dansereau hit a bases-loaded triple to right-center in the second inning, clearing the bags for a 3-1 Raptors lead.

Lefty Chase Stratton lasted 2 1/3 innings as the starter for Ogden (10-8) and gave way to Riley Ottesen after putting a runner on board in the third. Ottesen’s streak of 10 2/3 scoreless relief innings to start the season ended with a bang when he put two more on and surrendered a grand slam to Zach May. That put the Chukars (8-10) in the lead 6-3.

Reese Alexiades homered for the fourth time of the series, a two-run dinger, in the bottom of the third to get the score to 6-5. Then Alexiades doubled in Juan Teixeira in the fifth to tie it up 6-6. Alexiades finished the game 4 for 4 with those three RBIs and two runs scored.

Idaho Falls retook the lead against Raptors reliever Foster Pace in the top of the sixth when Jordan Myrow singled in Bryce Brown and Brandon Bohning to go up 8-6.

Brandon McCabe, Jon Rice and Dan Kubiuk pitched around four walks in the final three innings to keep Idaho Falls off the board. McCabe pitched out of a bases-loaded jam with one out in the seventh.

That helped get the game to the Knockout when the Raptors rallied in the ninth. Dakota Conners led off getting hit by a pitch and Teixeira doubled with one out. With two outs, Sal Gozzo singled them in for an 8-8 tie.

Ogden has Monday off before three games in Boise from Tuesday through Thursday. The Raptors then return home for three games against Idaho Falls from Friday, June 16, through Sunday, June 18.

Newsletter