The newest members of the Premier Development League took the field for the first time Thursday night, sporting red jerseys and going by a simple title: the Reds.

The Lane United Football Club played its first friendly match at South Eugene High School against the Portland Timbers U-23 Development squad, and was complete with fan-waving, drum-banging and chant cheering fanatics. Although the Reds lost 3-0, this is just the start for the grassroots effort.

Lane United was started by President Dave Galas as a “community benefit nonprofit corporation dedicated to establishing professional soccer in Eugene,” per the team website. Galas, secretary/treasurer Ron Crasilneck and five board members make up the board of directors for the Reds, who will play friendly matches this summer as part of a major fundraising campaign. The club will begin competing in the PDL in 2014.

Although the fan base is small, plenty of passion is behind each and every chant.

“We want this here in our community,” said Reds supporter Adam Smith. “I want this in my community. When (Dave Galas) made it possible … I threw on my scarf, I threw on my jersey and said yeah, I want this in my community.”

The official cheering section, which is similar to the Timbers Army, does not yet have an official name, but Smith stressed that they want to make it their own.

“We’re still trying to figure out who we are… we’re trying to include everybody and raise the enthusiasm too,” he said. “We’re trying not to copy Timbers Army … we’re trying to find our own voice.”

Smith said two possible names for the cheering section are “Rojos Locos” and “The Red Brigade.” Albeit small, the Reds bleachers were highlighted by red and white-checkered flags, pro-Reds chants and a single drum to hold the rhythm. Lane United plans to eventually move their home games to a rejuvenated Civic Stadium. The planned renovations include a standing room only terrace for Lane United supporters at the south end of the field according to the team’s website.

Although they lost their first game, the Reds played well against an experienced and talented Timbers U-23 squad.

“We had a lot of local quality that was able to withstand the pressure that they were playing on us and play out of pressure,” said coach Gabriel Hernandez of his team’s performance. “These guys are experienced players that were exposed to that at some point in their careers, and they showcased it tonight.” Hernandez also stressed the importance of fan support.

“It’s everything. I think without them this does not exist. This is a grassroots effort, and we wish to have rewarded them with a goal, but I think just being out here and playing and sort of showing them this is what we’re about … that was our thank you to them.”

The opening match at South Eugene High School is a great first step, but this club and its fans have bigger dreams in sight.

“We need to be over there,” Smith said, pointing toward the dark and vacant Civic Stadium. “We’re just dumb football fans, and we just want to see it here. We just really want to see it here.”

The Salem-Keizer Volcanoes beat the Eugene Emeralds 4-3 Wednesday night, completing a three-game sweep of their in-state rivals. Chase Johnson made his second start for the Volcanoes and picked up his first win of the season (1-0). Johnson pitched five scoreless innings of three-hit ball, striking out three along the way. Johnson has yet to allow a run so far this season in nine innings of work.

Erik Schoenrock (2-2) started on the mound for the Ems and pitched well but was hurt by an error, which led to two Salem-Keizer runs. After Ryan Jones doubled home Sam Eberle in the fifth, Jeremy Sy reached base safely on a throwing error by shortstop Felipe Blanco, allowing Randy Ortiz to score. Ortiz singled and got robbed of an RBI on a perfect throw to the plate by right fielder Hunter Renfroe, ousting Jones, the attempted scorer. Brian Ragira doubled, driving in Sy who reached on the Blanco error.

Schoenrock allowed three runs (one earned) on six hits with four strikeouts and two walks on the night.

The Ems’ first chance to score came in the third inning when Blanco reached second with one out and advanced to third with two down, but a Michael Bass groundout stranded the runner.

Eugene finally broke through in the sixth against Jake Shadle. Bass singled to lead off the inning and would later score on a Fernando Perez single. With Perez and Santos on base and two outs, a Shadle wild pitch advanced the runners to second and third. Malquiel Brito grounded out to first to end the inning with Eugene trailing 3-1.

Salem-Keizer added an insurance run in the seventh with two outs as Jones scored from second, courtesy of Sy’s fifth double of the season.

The Ems could smell a comeback in the eighth. Renfroe led off the inning with a walk, and Trae Santos followed by reaching on an error, putting two runners on with nobody out. Perez grounded out but the runners still advanced, setting up Michael Miller with two runners in scoring position and one away. Miller would come through with a line drive single to center, scoring Renfroe and cutting the lead to 4-2. Pinch hitter Henry Charles added an RBI single, decreasing the Volcanoes’ lead to 4-3. Blanco grounded out to end the inning, and it would be up to the top of the order to complete the comeback in the ninth.

In the end the Emeralds fell short, being retired in order by closer Raymundo Montero who picked up his sixth save of the season.

Salem-Kezier’s bullpen made it interesting, but when all was said and done the Volcanoes offense was enough to hold off the Emeralds, and Shadle and Armando Paniagua were each credited with their second hold of the campaign.

The Ems have now dropped four in a row and will look to bounce back as they continue their road trip against the Vancouver Canadians.

The Eugene Emeralds lost their third consecutive contest Tuesday night, falling to the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes 8-2. Four home runs and stellar pitching from starter Andrew Leenhouts and three relief pitchers led the Volcanoes to their fifth win in their last six games. Leenhouts (5-0) tossed five innings allowing two runs (one earned), lowering his already stellar ERA to 1.65. Jake Smith, Chris Fern and Tyler Rogers shut out the Ems over the final four innings to clinch the win for Leenhouts and the Volcanoes.

Salem-Keizer’s bats exploded in the middle innings. Brandon Bednar led off the fourth inning with a solo home run to left, and Brian Ragira and Shilo McCall added back-to-back solo shots with two outs. In the fifth, Eugene Escalante scored on a Bednar sac fly, and Jeremy Sy followed with a two-run jack to left to cap off the Volcanoes’ four-homer night. They added two more run in the sixth courtesy of RBIs by Ryan Jones and Randy Ortiz. Nearly the entire lineup contributed to Tuesday night’s win; seven different players recorded a hit, four of which were multi-hit games. Bednar and Sy each drove in two runs to lead the RBI column.

Eugene had chances of their own to score runs, but went 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position, leaving nine men on base. Ronnie Richardson, Hunter Renfroe and Malquiel Brito had two hits apiece. The Ems’ first real scoring chance came in the third with Richardson on third and Renfroe on second with two outs, but Wynton Bernard flied out to end the inning. Eugene finally broke through in the fourth; with the bases loaded and no outs, Brito singled to center to give the Ems a 1-0 lead. Ryan Miller would score two batters later on a Leenhouts wild pitch, accounting for the only other run Eugene would score in the game.

The Emeralds would threaten again in the eighth when the first two batter reached base safely, but a double play and a ground out retired the side with runners stranded on the corners.

Eugene starter Jimmy Brasoban (1-2) had pitched well all season, bringing his sparkling 2.00 ERA into his seventh start. He raised that number to 3.38 Tuesday, as he allowed six runs on seven hits over five innings of work. Brasoban had only one home run hit off him through his first six starts, but got crushed, allowing four in Eugene’s loss. Genison Reyes allowed two runs in his lone inning of work, and Josh Richardson threw two scoreless innings of relief to round out the night on the mound for Eugene.

The Emeralds and Volcanoes will conclude their three-game series Wednesday night. The Ems will be looking to salvage one game from the North Division leaders and end their three-game skid.

The Eugene Emeralds traveled to Salem to take on the division-leading Salem-Keizer Volcanoes and dropped the first game of their three-game set. The loss drops Eugene to 11-20 on the season, 0-4 against the Volcanoes.

The Ems offense got started early, with a Hunter Renfroe homerun to left in the first inning to give Eugene a 1-0 lead. Salem-Keizer would answer quickly, though, roughing up starter Erik Cabrera for four runs in the bottom of the inning. A single and two walks loaded the bases with one out, until Ryan Tuntland unloaded them with a three-run triple to deep center field. An RBI single and a walk before the end of the inning called for Cabrera’s departure, his shortest outing of the season.

Eugene wouldn’t pose another threat offensively until the sixth, when Ronnie Richardson legged out a double to start the inning. Renfroe advanced Richardson with a ground out and a wild pitch allowed him to score with two outs. But once again, the Volcanoes were quick to answer in the home half. Brandon Bednar singled home Ty Ross who walked to lead off the inning. The Ems chipped away again in the seventh, but they scored via small ball and could only muster one run. The theme continued for Salem-Keizer as they scored two runs of their own. Singles by Brian Ragira and Tyler Horan and a walk by Tuntland put Emeralds reliever Jairo Gomez on a short leash, and he was taken out of the game after walking Shilo McCall to force home Ragira. Tuntland would eventually score on a John Plonious single, giving Salem-Keizer a commanding 7-3 lead through seven innings.

For the second time is as many innings, the Volcanoes scored a run on a bases loaded walk in the eighth, one of 11 free passes issued by Emeralds pitchers. Amazingly, McCall walked with the bases juiced and Ragira, Horan and Tuntland on base once again.

The Ems had a chance to get back into the game in the ninth with the bases loaded and one out. Henry Charles walked to force home a run, cutting the lead to 8-4, but ultimately Eugene’s comeback attempt would fall short.

Chase Jensen and Ryan Miller led the Emeralds offensively with two hits apiece including a double each. Although he went hitless, Charles tallied two RBI, bringing his team-leading total to 14. Renfroe, the MLB draft’s 13th overall selection, hit the second home run of his short career. He’s hitting .400 through five games with Eugene.

Starting pitcher Erik Cabrera (0-5) put the Ems in a hole early, giving up four runs in less than an inning of work. The bullpen wasn’t much better though. Three relief pitchers allowed another four runs to score on eight walks over the remainder of the game. The offense had their chances; the Ems went 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position but failed to capitalize.

On the other side of the scoreboard, the Volcanoes managed to score eight runs despite leaving 11 men on base, but countered that by hitting .500 with runners in scoring position (6-for-12). Chris Johnson (3-2) pitched a solid six innings for Salem-Keizer and Raymundo Montero recorded the game’s final two outs for his fifth save of the season.

The Eugene Emeralds and Everett AquaSox wrapped up their five-game series Sunday evening at PK Park, and it ended on a sour note for the Ems even though they took three games from the visiting opponents. Eugene led 3-0 after four innings and took a 4-1 lead into the seventh, but the bullpen couldn’t hold the advantage, relinquishing four runs over the final three innings resulting in a 5-4 loss. Everett shortstop Jack Reinheimer started the ninth by reaching first on an error and advancing to second when the ball was thrown out of play. Two batters later, Christian Carmichael hit a line drive to center field, driving home the eventual winning run. The usually reliable Adam Cimber was saddled with his first loss of the season (0-1).

The unraveling started in the seventh inning. Relief pitcher Michael Kelly got into trouble when he walked Chantz Mack, hit Reggie Lawson and walked James Zamarripa to load the bases with nobody out. Coby Cowgill replaced Kelly and allowed runs on back-to-back singles to right by Michael Faulkner and Bryan Brito. Reinheimer hit a soft ground ball towards second base, and confusion in the infield prevented a play from being made, scoring Zamarripa and leaving the bases loaded. Cowgill stopped the bleeding by retiring each of the next three batters to send the game to the home half in a 4-4 tie.

“Well … we walked two and hit one,” said Eugene manager Jim Gabella on the seventh inning. “You put guys on when you have a three run lead and bad things can happen, and they did.”

Everything went well for the Emeralds up until the seventh. With two runners on and one out in the second, Michael Bass lined a single to right field, allowing Malquiel Brito to score from second and give the Ems their first run of the ballgame. Marcus Davis followed with a sac fly to center, scoring Miguel Del Castillo. Brito led off the home half of the fourth with a double to left and would come around to score two batters later, courtesy of another single by Bass, who had three hits and two RBI in total for the game. The Emeralds second baseman also showcased his speed, stealing two bases. Brito and Ronnie Richardson chipped in with two hits apiece.

Starting pitcher Bryan Verbitsky left Eugene in a great position to win the game. He lasted five innings, allowing just one run on four hits, tying a season-high with eight strikeouts.

“His pitch count was up. He went deep in the count a lot and his pitch count was up, so he was done then,” said Gabella regarding the decision to replace Verbitsky. He got into trouble only once, in the third inning when the AquaSox loaded the bases with two outs, but struck out Justin Seager to end the threat and retire the side. Despite putting up excellent numbers through six starts this season (2.08 ERA, .151 opponent average), Verbitsky is still in search of his first professional win since being drafted in the third round of the MLB Draft this summer.

The loss snaps Eugene’s three-game winning streak, and they’ll look to bounce back against the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes in their next series.

The Eugene Emeralds bounced back after a disappointing loss to even their series with the Everett AquaSox at a game apiece with a 6-3 win Thursday night. The San Diego Padres first round pick Hunter Renfroe made his professional debut and collected his first two hits, an infield single in the fourth and an opposite field double in the fifth.

“(Got) the first hit off my chest and swung the bat well and it was a good start,” said a very humble Renfroe on his performance. “I was a little bit rusty, came back and had three good days of BP, and did what I had to do.” Renfroe is coming to Eugene fresh off of leading Mississippi State to their first ever College World Series final. Though he played all over the field at the collegiate level including pitcher and catcher, Renfroe will likely be an outfielder in the pros.

Renfroe scored Eugene’s first run of the night on a Fernando Perez groundout to second, which would be followed up by a Henry Charles RBI double to give the Ems a 2-0 lead after four innings. Then Jim Gabella and the Emeralds played small ball in the fifth to tack on another run; Felipe Blanco led off with a double and was moved to third via a Ronnie Richardson sac bunt, and later scored when Edwin Moreno hit a sacrifice fly to deep right field. The Ems haven’t executed well with runners on base as of late, so tonight’s improvement may be a positive sign of things to come.

The AquaSox cut the Ems’ lead down to 3-2 in the top half of the sixth. D.J. Peterson provided the big hit with two runners on and one out, doubling home Michael Faulkner and Justin Seager. After a walk and an error, Everett had the bases loaded with one down, but reliever Kyle Lloyd recorded back-to-back strikeouts to escape the threat.

The game was briefly tied in the seventh when Faulkner scored on a wild pitch by Michael Kelly, his second of the inning. The Ems answered with two runs of their own in the bottom of the seventh with more well-executed situational hitting. Blanco lined another leadoff double to right center and was advanced to third on another Richardson bunt. Blanco would score on a Moreno single to re-gain the lead. With the bases loaded and two outs, Moreno scampered home on a wild pitch by AquaSox reliever Aaron Brooks.

Eugene starter Yimmi Brasoban pitched well but got a no decision, allowing one run on three hits over five innings of work, lowering his team-leading ERA to 2.00. Kelly picked up the win in relief (1-1) and Adam Cimber closed it out in the ninth for his third save of the season.

Despite any rookie hazing that may take place in college and the pros, Renfroe said it’s all about having fun as a member of the Emeralds.

“It’s all good guys here and we have a lot of fun together, and we’ll continue to win and have fun.”

Everett AquaSox starting pitcher Tyler Olson made his job look easy Wednesday night, surrendering a lone hit which almost wasn’t, en route to a masterfully pitched complete game shutout in Everett’s series opening victory over the Eugene Emeralds 5-0. The Emeralds’ only hit came in the bottom of the sixth inning with two outs, a soft line drive to left field off the bat of Chase Jensen that barely touched the PK Park turf before bouncing into the glove of a diving Phillips Castillo. Ronnie Richardson followed with a walk to account for the only other base runner the Emeralds could manage.

Olson, a seventh round pick of the Seattle Mariners from Gonzaga, had hitters guessing all night. His fastball never reached higher than 88 mph, and his off-speed pitches dialed in as low as 70 on the radar gun.

“He’s not overpowering, he’s a pitcher,” said Ems manager Jim Gabella of Olson. “He knows what he’s doing, he changes speeds, throws the ball wherever he wants … when you do that it’s tough to hit. You tip your cap to that guy, he did a great job.” Olson recorded a professional career-best 10 strikeouts and picked up his first win of the season, the fourth straight for the AquaSox.

Although one would assume the contrary, Olson hasn’t been this unhittable the entire season. In his previous start against the Vancouver Canadians, he gave up seven runs in 4.2 innings. However, in his second career start he had a no-hitter in tact when he was pulled from the game after five innings.

Offensively, nearly the entire AquaSox lineup contributed. Four different players scored runs and nobody in the lineup had more than one RBI. James Zamarripa and Jack Reinheimer had three hits apiece hitting leadoff and second, respectively. The AquaSox struck first in the top of the sixth when Castillo doubled to left center, driving in D.J. Peterson. Lonnie Kauppila tacked on a run via sacrifice fly, allowing Austin Wilson to trot home from third.

The offense continued for Everett in the seventh. Peterson reached base on an error by Ems third baseman Fernando Perez, driving home Zamarripa who led off the inning with a single. Eugene was fortunate to give up only five runs considering the AquaSox tallied 11 hits and seven walks, leaving 11 men on base.

Emeralds starter Erik Cabrera (0-4) struggled to consistently find the strike zone, walking six batters over 5.1 innings of work. He worked fast and threw hard, reaching 94 MPH, but AquaSox hitters picked up on it and capitalized. In 15 appearances (nine starts) between Eugene and Fort Wayne of the Midwest League, Cabrera is 0-7 with a 7.23 ERA.

Game two will take place at PK Park Thursday night at 7:05 pm. Thyago Vieira (2-1) is Everett’s projected starter, and Yimmi Brasoban (1-1) will get the call for the home team.

The Eugene Emeralds begin a five-game series Wednesday night against the Everett AquaSox. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 pm at PK Park, where mascot Sluggo will be celebrating his birthday.

The Ems are returning home after a tough road series against the Spokane Indians, in which they lost four of five games. Wednesday’s matchup with the AquaSox will be the first of the season. The Seattle Mariners class A affiliates are currently leading the North Division of the Northwest League at 18-7 and will enter play riding a three-game winning streak. Left hander Tyler Olson (0-1) will be making his fifth start on the mound, seeking his first win of the season for the AquaSox.

His counterpart will be Erik Cabrera (0-3). The right-handed Dominican product has struggled on the bump this season for the Emeralds, posting a 5.68 ERA through five starts. In his last start, however, Cabrera threw five scoreless innings against Spokane, a no decision.

Padres first round pick Hunter Renfroe recently signed with the team and has been assigned to play for the Emeralds. Renfroe hit .345/.431/.620 with 16 home runs and 65 RBI this year at Mississippi State, leading them to an appearance in the College World Series final. The 6-foot-1-inch outfielder will report to the team Wednesday, so he likely won’t see any action for a few games.

Sluggo and his mascot friends will celebrate his birthday with a game of mascot kickball prior to first pitch. The Duck and the Carl’s Jr. Star will join Sluggo and take part in the festivities.

The Eugene Emeralds and Spokane Indians completed their five-game series Monday night, a 2-1 win for Spokane at home. The Indians won four of the five games, improving to 14-11 on the season while the Ems fall to 8-17, having lost five of their last six contests.

Monday night’s season finale was a pitcher’s duel at its finest. Each offense managed only five hits, two of which were home runs. Indians starter Collin Wiles tossed 4.1 innings allowing one run on three hits, but was not awarded the win since he failed to get through five innings of work. Richard Alvarez (1-1) picked up the win in relief for Spokane, throwing 1.2 innings of flawless relief, not allowing a single Ems hitter to reach base. Sam Wolff and Cody Ege closed out the final three innings, earning their first hold and save of the season, respectively.

Bryan Verbitsky (0-2) pitched well through four innings, but walked four Indians hitters, getting himself into trouble and upping his pitch count. Tayron Guerrero threw four scoreless relief innings and allowed a single hit.

Offensively, the Ems had opportunities to score runs but failed to capitalize. They loaded the bases in the second inning with no outs, ultimately stranding all three runners following a groundout to the pitcher and back-to-back strikeouts. In the eighth, a Marcus Davis double and a Ronnie Richardson walk put runners on first and second with one out. But once again, consecutive strikeouts ended the inning, two of 10 strikeouts for Indians pitching on the night. Pinch hitter Wynton Bernard singled with two outs in the ninth to keep the Ems alive, but was picked off at first base by Ege to end the game.

Eugene’s lone run of the ballgame came courtesy of a fifth innings solo home run off the bat of Henry Charles, his third of the season. Davis, Bernard, Anthony Torres and Malquiel Brito added a hit apiece, but strikeouts and poor situational hitting hindered Eugene’s performance.

Spokane scored both runs in the third inning, first on a solo homer to right field by Janluis Castro, then on a single to center by Alberto Triunfel, scoring Kevin Torres who got into scoring position via a base on balls, wild pitch and fielder’s choice.

The Ems have Tuesday off and return to the field Wednesday night against Seattle Mariners Single-A affiliate Everett AquaSox at PK Park. The game will open a five-game set. The Ems handled Everett last year, taking the season series eight games to four. But the AquaSox are a much improved team this season, as they’ll enter the series as the Northwest League’s North division leaders at 18-7.

The Eugene Emeralds and Hillsboro Hops will conclude their three game series Wednesday night at PK Park. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m., as Bryan Verbitsky (0-0) will take the mound for the Ems against Jose Martinez (1-1). The Emeralds took the first two contests of the three-game set and will be looking to sweep their in-state rivals.

Ronnie Richardson ended Tuesday night’s game in dramatic fashion with a walk-off single in the 11th inning, clinching the series for the Ems. Game three marks the end of Eugene’s brief three-game home stand. They’ll play their next five games on the road against the Spokane Indians.

To celebrate Independence Day, the Emeralds will put on their annual fireworks display following the conclusion of the game. In addition, the first 2,000 fans in attendance will receive a free battery powered glow stick to augment the night’s activities. Albeit a night early, the “fireworks spectacular” is a great show for fans of all ages.