Norris Tips Tribe With Hr

Dax Norris’ one-out homer in the 11th inning Tuesday - Eugene’s Northwest League-best 20th - gave the Emeralds a 9-8 win over the Spokane Indians.

Norris jumped on a 3-2 pitch from Jamie Burton (0-1), who had blanked Eugene (9-6) for 3-1/3 innings. Adam Milburn (2-0) earned the win despite allowing the tying run in the ninth.

Eugene leads the season series 4-2 after winning the first two of four games at home. Brandon Baird (1-0) draws his first starting assignment tonight for Spokane.

Spokane (6-9) led 1-0 in the first when Scott Harp reached on an error and Brandon Berger collected an infield single off starter Joe Nelson.

Spokane starter Scott Mullen couldn’t hold the edge. Steve Hacker hit his third homer, a solo shot, and Spokane’s infield committed back-to-back errors for a 2-1 Eugene lead in the second.

In the third, with two outs, Hacker clubbed his team-high fifth double and Corey Pointer slammed Eugene’s 19th homer for a 4-1 bulge.

Spokane tied the score in the fifth, with the help of Eugene catcher Gavin Brown. First, Harp hit his first professional homer, a solo blast. Then the combination of Kenderick Moore’s single, Jeremy Giambi’s walk, Kit Pellow’s RBI grounder and three passed balls by Brown resulted in two runs.

Brown had five passed balls for the game, one short of the league record. He atoned somewhat in the Eugene fifth with a two-run bloop single off Mullen for a 6-4 lead.

Both starting pitchers left after five. Eugene reliever Joe Giuliano allowed Kris Didion’s leadoff triple in the sixth, and another Brown passed ball cut the lead to 6-5.

Indians reliever Jake Chapman nearly escaped a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the sixth, but Brian Rust’s two-run bloop single on a 3-2 count pushed the advantage to 8-5.

Spokane chipped away to force extra innings. Pellow had a sacrifice fly in the seventh. Jason Layne tripled to lead off the eighth and scored on a pinch-hit double by the newest Indian, Doug Blosser.

Moore walked in the ninth off Milburn, stole two bases to give him four for the game, and scored on another Pellow sacrifice fly.

Emeralds 9, Indians 8 (11)

Spokane Eugene ab r h bi ab r h bi Harp cf 6 2 1 1 Hines 2b 4 1 0 0 Moore 2b 3 3 1 0 Cross dh 5 1 0 0 Giambi rf 4 1 0 0 DeRosa ss 6 0 0 0 Pellow dh 2 0 1 3 Hacker 1b 3 2 3 1 Berger lf 5 0 1 1 Pointer lf 6 2 1 2 Layne 1b 3 1 1 0 Rust 3b 5 1 2 2 Mirnda ph 1 0 0 0 Jhnson cf 6 1 2 1 Arrlldo 1b 0 0 0 0 Brown c 4 0 2 2 Didion 3b 5 1 2 0 Norris c 2 1 1 1 Robles c 5 0 1 0 Pickett rf 5 0 2 0 Taft ss 3 0 0 0 Blosser ph 1 0 1 1 Pitts pr 0 0 0 0 Sees ss 1 0 0 0 Totals 39 8 9 6 Totals 46 9 13 9 Spokane 100 031 111 00 - 8 Eugene 022 022 000 01 - 9 One out when winning run scored.

E-Rust (2), Didion 2 (5), Moore 2 (2), Berger (2). DP-Spokane 2. LOBSpokane 6, Eugene 13. 2B-Didion (1), Hacker (5), Blosser (1). 3B-Rust (1), Didion (2), Layne (1). HR-Spokane, Harp (1), Eugene, Hacker (3), Pointer (4), Norris (1). SB-Moore 4 (8), Cross (2). CS-Moore (1). S-Hines. SF-Pellow 2.

Spokane IP H R ER BB SO Mullen 5 9 6 4 1 4 Chapman 2 3 2 2 2 2 Burton L,0-1 3-1/3 1 1 1 2 1 Eugene IP H R ER BB SO Nelson 5 6 4 2 2 3 Giuliano 2 1 2 1 0 3 Allen 1 2 1 1 0 2 Mlbrn W,2-0 3 0 1 1 2 2 HBPby Chapman (Cross), by Giulano (Moore). WP-Allen. PB-Brown 5, Robles.

T-3:53. A-2,850.