Raptors sputter after early lead, lose 3rd straight in front of near-record crowd
Ogden took an early lead over Idaho Falls but the offense sputtered and the Chukars claimed a third straight victory over the Raptors, winning 9-6 in front of 5,996 fans Friday night at Lindquist Field.
The crowd, full of school kids on Ogden School District night, may be the largest for Ogden since its record of 6,317 set early in the 1997 season when Lindquist Field opened.
That crowd seemed to unofficially see the Raptors’ postseason chances dry up as Ogden fell to a season-low 10 games below .500 with 14 games left.
Outfielder Jack Cone hit a solo homer in the first inning, and Nick Ultsch and Chris Sargent pitched in RBI singles in the second to get the Raptors up 4-2.
Ogden (36-46, 14-20 second half) had four runs on seven hits through two innings, then totaled just two runs on five hits for the final seven innings.
Idaho Falls (35-47 15-19) took the lead in the third when Tyler Wyatt hit a three-run homer off Raptors starter Rafael Vazquez. Jacob Jablonski hit a solo shot off Vazquez to make it 6-4 before the third was over.
Wyatt left the yard again, a solo shot in the fifth, to boost what became a five-RBI night for the Idaho Falls center fielder.
Second baseman Connor Bagnieski cut the deficit to one with a two-run shot in the seventh, pulling Ogden to within 7-6. But on the second straight night, IF shortstop Anthony Mata hit a backbreaking home run, a two-run bomb in the top of the ninth to make it 9-6.
And, like two nights before, the Raptors got runners on base before a string of strikeouts.
An Ultsch double and Sargent single brought the tying run to the plate for Ogden with zero outs in the bottom of the ninth — and it was Rob Hughes again for the Chukars, repeating his Wednesday performance by striking out Bagnieski, Drew Brutcher and Elliott Good to end the game.
The teams play the fifth of their six-game series at 6:30 p.m. Saturday.
