Dittrick's relief shuts down Bend; Knights win 4-1, sweep series

Rob Dittrick threw 5 2/3 innings of scoreless, two-hit relief and the red-hot Knights won their eighth game in a row by edging the Elks 4-1.

Corvallis (12-4 WCL, 12-4 overall) now leads the second-place Elks (7-5) by three games in the West Division.

A junior at Pacific University who was one of the top pitchers in the Northwest Conference in 2011 and 2012, Dittrick relieved starter Mitch Patito of UC Riverside in the fourth inning with runners on the corners. He immediately got out of the jam when the Elks ran into a double play on his third-to-first pickoff move.

The Elks had five more baserunners in the final five innings, but they again ran themselves out of potential rallies, and Dittrick twice got big third outs to strand the tying run on third. He walked one, struck out one and got 11 of his 17 outs on ground balls in an efficient, 60-pitch performance.

Dittrick was originally a 10-day signee. But he's earned an extended stay with the team by going 2-0 with a 1.21 ERA over 22 innings in his four appearances.

"I didn't feel any pressure" to produce immediately and keep his spot, he said. "I'm just trying to do my thing and if it works it works."

He said it doesn't feel any different coming out of the bullpen than starting; his four appearances are evenly split between starting and relieving.

The Knights swept the three-game series by a combined score of 21-7, and have won five of their six series overall. They prevailed 9-4 and 8-2 in Bend on Saturday and Sunday, respectively.

Bend took a 1-0 lead in the first but second-inning singles by Greg Mahle of UC Santa Barbara, Matt Nylen of Western Oregon and Alex Michaels of Cal Poly produced the tying run. The Knights went ahead to stay in the fifth, 2-1, on a bases-loaded walk to Mahle.

A two-run, two-out single by Michaels in the eighth-inning delivered some crucial insurance runs. Michaels had two hits and three RBIs to lead an 8-hit attack. Mahle, a freshman two-way player, who arrived in Corvallis on Monday morning, had two hits, two runs and an RBI in his Knights' debut.

The Knights open a two-game series against the Cowlitz Black Bears in Longview, Wash., at 6:35 p.m. on Tuesday. Lefty Dylan Stuart of UC Riverside, a 2011 WCL all-star, makes his 2012 debut as the Knights starter.

Bryan Granger (0-0, 0.00) of Cal Poly is Corvallis' projected starter in Wednesday�s 6:35 p.m. series finale, opposed by Cal State-Fullerton freshman Alec Cordova (1-0, 1.23).

The Knights host the Ports of WCL Portland in a non-conference game at 6:40 p.m. Friday. It's a $1,000 Dash for Cash night for children 12 and under, presented by All Family Vision Care. It's also our annual Scout OverKnighter, brought to you by the Boys Scouts of America.