Chase Meister tossed 8 1/3 innings of scoreless baseball to help Oregon Tech to a 2-0 win over Corban. (photo by Kelly Caleb)
Oregon Tech Splits Home Opening Doubleheader versus Corban
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – Oregon Tech took game 1 behind a solid pitching performance by Chase Meister, while Corban scored eight of their 10 total runs with two outs to take the nightcap in NAIA West baseball action this afternoon at Kiger Stadium. Oregon Tech blanked the Warriors 2-0 and fell 10-5 in game 2.
Meister tossed 8 1/3 scoreless innings to move to 3-4 on the hill with Raf Belloc recording his first save of the season in the opening game. For the Warriors Jacob Kopra improved to 3-2 after going eight innings for CU.
The split puts Oregon Tech at 9-20 overall and 2-8 in NAIA West play. Corban sits at 16-10 on the year and 5-5 in the conference standings.
The teams will conclude their four-game series tomorrow with a twinbill beginning at 11:00 a.m.
Game 1 – Scoreless until the third inning, Tech’s Brent Hegdahl singled with Dustin Norman driving a 3-2 pitch off the left field wall plating Hegdahl to make it a 1-0 game.
Meister eased through four innings before CU threatened in the fifth and sixth innings. Peter Martin and Kyle Kunkel reached on back-to-back singles and with two outs William Koenig earned a walk to load the bases for the Warriors. Marc Gallegos next lined a deep fly ball into the gap in left-center where Jared Nelson ran it down to end the inning. It was no different in the sixth inning for Tech as Meister got out of a one-out jam with CU runners on first and second. A fly out to centerfield followed by a ground out to second base ended that Warrior threat.
The Owls added their second run of the game in the seventh inning when Ethan Schlecht drove a ball over the left field wall to make it 2-0.
Clinging to the two-run lead, Meister once again battled through a Corban threat in the eighth inning. Back-to-back singles and a sacrifice bunt put Gallegos and Jordan Johansen at second and third base. After a pop up to second, a walk loaded the bases. Meister, however, coaxed a ground out to end the inning.
Tech was unable to push a run across in their half of the eighth only to see the Warriors put the tying run on base with one out. Another spectacular grab in center field by Nelson made it two outs, while a fly ball to right field preserved the win for the Owls. Meister recorded the first out of the final inning, while Belloc ended the game for the Owls.
Game 2 – Tech pitcher Craig Kathol took off where Meister left, holding Corban scoreless through the first four innings. CU, however, would score at least one run over their final five at-bats.
Tech led 1-0 after recording a run in the second inning. Corban bounced back with two of their own in the top of the fifth, with the Owls regaining the lead, 3-2, after a pair of runs in their half of the fifth inning.
Tech’s Ethan Schlecht led off the second with a double and later scored on an Alex Antonaras RBI giving the Owls their first lead of game 2. A two-out walk followed by a Gallegos homerun put CU up 2-1. Tech then took their last lead of the game in the fifth inning after Rogers drove in a run to tie with Tech taking a 3-2 lead on a wild pitch. It was all Corban from that point with the big blow coming in a five-run seventh.
Corban tied the game with a single run in the sixth, but moved up 8-3 with a two-out five-run seventh inning. Nate Williams accounted for two of CU’s runs on his double, while the Owls used a pick-off to get out of the inning.
Corban added single runs in the eighth and ninth with the Owls adding a pair in the last inning on three-straight two-out hits before CU recorded the last out on a ground out to Gallegos at shortstop.
Tech’s Rogers came up with six hits on the day and drove in two, while Aaron Bocchi added three hits for Tech. Ethan Schlecht added two hits and a RBI, while Ryan Hayden finished with two hits and a RBI in game 2.
For Corban, Gallegos and Williams drove in three runs, with each recording two hits and a homerun. Derek Legg finished with three hits and Martin two hits and two RBI with Steven Kha adding two hits and a double in game 2.