Senior Darren Johnson tallied a hit in each game today versus the T-birds of British Columbia.
Warriors Drop Twinbill to T-birds Thanks to the Long Ball
SALEM, Ore. – In its home opening doubleheader, Corban's baseball team dropped a pair of regional games to the University of British Columbia, 4-0 & 6-1, as the visiting Thunderbirds amassed four home runs in the two games despite masterful pitching by the Warriors' staff Friday at Warrior Field.
Playing for the first time this season in front of the home crowd, second-year head coach Nate Mayben put the ball in the hands of senior Jordan Emery (Salem, Ore.) for today's opener in hopes of beginning its home season on a winning note.
Unfortunately for Emery and the Warriors, a pair of first inning runs via a two-run home run to left center by UBC's Ryan Pilgrim turned out to be costly.
Corban's best opportunity to get on the board came in the bottom of the third inning when sophomore Mitch Riddle (Pullman, Wash.) opened the stanza with a single to right field. Sophomore John Kazmierski (Salem, Ore.) came in as a courtesy run for Pullman and advanced to second on a pass ball following junior Rondie Taylor's (Clackamas, Ore.) strikeout. During the next at-bat, Kazmierski advanced to third on a wild pitch but was stranded ninety feet from home when junior Craig Spicer (Vancouver, Wash.) grounded out to short to end the inning.
Emery came out in the fourth inning with the Warriors still down by two runs and succumb to the game's second home run off the bat of British Columbia's Scott Webster via a shot to right field that handed the visiting team a three-run advantage (3-0).
Another single UBC run in the sixth inning capped the game's scoring, as the visiting Thunderbirds rode the left arm of Mark Hardy, who went the distance allowing a mere three hits with nine K's, en route to securing the shutout.
Emery pitched all 7.0 innings, allowing four runs (all earned) on five hits while striking out a game-high 10 batters.
Corban's bats were led by a trio of players -- Spicer, senior Darren Johnson (Vancouver, Wash.), and Riddle -- who each tallied one hit. Meanwhile, UBC was led by Sammie Starr and Pilgrim who had a pair of hits each in the victory.
In the nightcap, freshman Nathan Hickok (Sherwood, Ore.) went 2-for-4 at the plate, but Corban lost the finale of the twinbill, 6-1.
Corban’s lone run came in the fifth inning as sophomore Cameron Meier (Salem, Ore.) crossed the plate on a fielder’s choice RBI by Spicer.
The Warriors tallied six hits in the game as Johnson and fellow senior Scott Flux (Salem, Ore.), along with freshman Kyle Taylor (Clackamas, Ore.), each added a hit to go along with a pair by Hickok and another base knock by Spicer.
Warriors' starting pitcher junior Jason Braun (Dallas, Ore.) gave up five earned runs on four hits in six innings on the mound to go along with three strikeouts before handing the ball over to the bullpen. Sophomore Josh Warner (Independence, Ore.) and freshman Kyle Lamson (Medford, Ore.) each recorded one strikeout in relief for the Warriors, as Warner went two innings and Lamson pitched the ninth.
The British Columbia offense was led by Nic Lendvoy who recorded two RBI on a pair of hits, including a two-run home run in the sixth inning to right field. Starr added an exclamation point in the seventh inning with a solo homer over the left field wall to cap the game's scoring, as UBC walked away from today's doubleheader with the five-run victory (6-1) in the nightcap.
UBC's starting pitcher Josh Brink tallied three strikeouts while giving up one unearned run on five hits in seven innings before turning the ball over to left-handed reliever Kurtis Schumacher for the final two innings.
With the losses, Corban falls to 2-6 overall, 0-2 in NAIA Region I play. Meanwhile, British Columbia improves to 6-7 overall, 2-0 in NAIA Region I action. Both teams will take the field again tomorrow at for the weekend’s third and final game beginning at 12:00 p.m.