Hops' second-half swoon continues with 3-2 loss to Dust Devils

For the second straight night Hillsboro was befuddled by Tri-City pitching, and as a result, for the fifth straight game the Hops were on the losing end, falling to the Dust Devils 3-2 on Thursday night, July 11, at Hillsboro Ballpark.

Tri-City starting pitcher Houston Harding allowed just four hits while striking out five over five shutout innings, then watched as Dust Devil relievers held on as the Hops made a late run at the visitors before failing to score the winning run from third with just a single out in the ninth.

The Devils got one run in the first and two more in the fifth, two of which were earned off of Hillsboro starter Roman Angelo who was solid for the most part, allowing just four hits while striking out eight over six innings.

The Hops tallied 10 hits in the game and were led by Manuel Pena who finished 3-for-4, but didn’t plate a run until Pena singled home Wilderd Patino in the ninth and later scored a second run on a Jack Hurley RBI-double. But Tommy Troy struck out with the potential tying run on third with one out, then Jose Fernandez grounded out to end the game.

With the loss, Hillsboro fell into last place in the Northwest League standings, a game behind Tri-City and 10 games behind first place Vancouver.

The Hops will look to end their five-game losing streak against Tri-City tonight at 7:05 p.m. at Hillsboro Ballpark.