Clements shines, Knights rally for win over Pippins.

Chris Clements (pictured) allowed one run and three hits in a solid 6-inning start and Corvallis edged Yakima Valley 3-1 on Thursday to salvage the final game of their WCL series.

The Knights (7-6 all, 6-6 WCL) scored two runs without a hit in the seventh inning to break a 1-1 tie. Reliever Dakody Clemmer (Central Arizona JC), roughed up in a closing situation at Wenatchee this past Sunday, responded with two perfect innings to earn his second save.

Corvallis thus preserved its remarkable record of never being swept in 60 three- or four-game series at Goss Stadium since it relocated here from Gresham for the 2007 season. The Pippins (8-4) had positioned themselves for a historic sweep by winning the first two games on Tuesday and Wednesday nights.

A rising sophomore at UC Santa Barbara, Clements gave up two hits and a run to the first three batters, then handcuffed the Pippins one one hit over the next 5 1/3 innings in a stellar performance in his initial appearance of the summer.

He struck out five, walked one, and threw 49 strikes in 67 pitches. He retired the final seven Pippins in order and got 10 outs via ground balls.

"I wasn�t nervous, maybe a little bit," he said. "Mostly I think it is cool being out here with all of the fans," and pitching in front of a crowd of 1,509, the second-largest gathering crowd for a WCL game this summer.

"Early on there was a little rust, I hadn't thrown in a while," as his last appearance for the Gauchos was on May 16. "Once I started settling down, my changeup and cutter slider were probably my better pitches."

Clements pitched sparingly as a freshman, but was 3-0 with a 2.16 ERA in eight appearances. He had 10 strikeouts in 16.2 innings and was second on the staff in innings by a freshmen.

"We have a pretty good rotation so I didn't get to throw a ton this year," said Clements, a right-hander from Pacific Grove. Calif. "Just to be able to come and throw out here this summer is awesome. Hopefully [I'll] get better to get some more innings next year."

Corvallis had numerous scoring chances through the first four innings and finally pulled even in the fifth. Andy Cosgrove (Washington) advanced to second on a leadoff single and error, was sacrificed to third, and scored on a groundout by Jes Staples (Bellarmine).

The decisive runs in the seventh crossed on a bases-loaded wild pitch and a hustle play by Nick Madrigal, who scored from third on a groundout to the pitcher.

Thursday's crowd of 1,503 upped the season attendance to 9,137 in seven dates. That puts the Knights 658 ahead of last year's total through a corresponding number of home openings.

The Knights start a three-game South Division series with Bend on Friday night. Slater Lee of Cal Poly (0-0, 0.00) will start for the Knights; Bend's starter is TBA.

It's Cowbell Night, presented by Linn-Benton Tractor. The first 250 fans through the gates get a free Knights' cowbell.