Ems Win Thriller in Vancouver to Secure Series Victory
Published on April 11, 2026 under Northwest League (NWL)
Eugene Emeralds News Release
VANCOUVER, BC - The Ems won an absolute nail-biter against the C's by a final score of 3-2. The Ems took a no-hitter into the bottom of the 9th but the Canadians rallied and had the tying run at 3rd with 1-out and the game winning on but Ben Peterson was able to get two clutch outs to give the Ems the series victory.
Eugene got the scoring started today with a run in the 3rd inning. Zane Zielinski drew a lead off walk and advanced into 3rd base after a groundout. Gavin Kilen followed it up a couple of batters later with a single to center field to push home the first run of the night.
The Canadians got on the board and tied up the game in the 5th with a bit of an unconventional run. Yunior Marte had thrown 4 scoreless innings and was on his way to a 1-2-3 5th inning on the mound. Matt Scannell struck out for what would've been the final out in the frame, but a passed ball on the dropped 3rd strike allowed him to reach 1st base safely. He ended up stealing 2nd before a walk put a pair of runners on. The leadoff man J.R Freethy hit a tough groundball to Zielinski at 2nd who threw away the ball at 1st and Scannell was able to come home and score from 2nd base without a base hit to tie the game at 1-1.
Cade Vernon took the keys from Marte and spun 2.2 hitless innings on the mound with no walks and 2 strikeouts and he picked up his 1st victory of the season.
The game remained tied until the 8th inning. Once again Zielinski led off the inning with a double and advanced into 3rd on a groundout. Stop me if you've heard this before, but Kilen hit a sac-fly RBI to bring him home and give the Ems the 2-1 lead. For Kilen, it was his NWL league leading 13th RBI of the season and his 4th game with multiple RBI's through his first 8 games.
In the 9th the Emeralds added on what proved to be an incredibly important run of insurance. After a leadoff walk and a 1 out hit from Walker Martin, Diego Cortaya hit into a fielder's choice to put runners at 1st and 2nd with 2-outs. Zielinski once again came in incredibly clutch and hit a 2-out single to drive home a run and give the Ems the 3-1 lead. It was the 4th time Zane reached base in the game.
That sent us to the bottom of the 9th and the Ems were just 3-outs away from their first no-hitter since April of 2024. It wouldn't last long as Hayden Gilliland smoked a double off the wall to bring the game tying run to the plate. After Ben Peterson struck out Manuel Beltre, Tucker Toman hit an RBI-Single to cut the lead to just 1 run. The next batter, Matt Scannell, singled to put the tying run at 3rd and the winning run at 1st with only 1-out.
The C's were able to tie the game in the 9th yesterday to force extras, but that wasn't in the cards today. Peterson struck out Brennan Orf before getting Freethy to hit a screamer into the glove of the Ems right fielder to give Eugene the 3-2 win.
It was a wild finish once again in Vancouver, and with today's win the Ems have now clinched a series victory against the C's after taking 4 of the first 5 games this week. They've won 2 1-run games and an extra innings game this week and have shown they truly can win in any way.
Next up for Eugene is the series finale tomorrow afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 PM with Luis De La Torre on the mound making his 2nd start of the year. Eugene will hold a 2-game lead in the standings regardless of the other outcomes across the NWL today heading into Sunday.
The Eugene Emeralds are the High-A affiliate of Major League Baseball's San Francisco Giants. The Eugene Emeralds are dedicated to providing the best in family entertainment and creating a fun, safe environment for everyone to enjoy watching a baseball game. For more information, please visit our website at www.EmeraldsBaseball.com or call the Emeralds front office at 541-342-5367.
Northwest League Stories from April 11, 2026
- Sox Win Home-Opening Series in Pitcher's Duel - Everett AquaSox
- Ninth-Inning Rally Comes up Short as Hops Fall to Indians, 6-3 - Hillsboro Hops
- Late Rally Comes up Just Short in 3-2 Defeat - Vancouver Canadians
- Ems Win Thriller in Vancouver to Secure Series Victory - Eugene Emeralds
- Early Pitchers' Duel Gets Away from Dust Devils Late - Tri-City Dust Devils
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