MONMOUTH, Ore. – Mountaineers Baseball split day one action against NCAA Division II foe Western Oregon on the road in what were two low scoring battles. Eastern Oregon won the series opener 3-1 before dropping a 2-1 bout in game two. With the 1-1 split, the Mounties are now 5-8 on the year.
Game 1 – Eastern Oregon 3, Western Oregon 1 (10 Innings)
• Helping the Mounties edge the Wolves (6-4) was a 7-3 edge in hitting. Western played a clean game with no errors, while EOU had just one.
• Propelling Eastern to victory was two runs being scored in the extra frame of the 10th inning. Prior to the extra inning, both squads mustered just one run each.
• The first run of the game came in the fourth.
Garret Kollar led off with a single and was plated home on a two-out deep RBI single to right by
Donovan Gonzalez.
• Both teams played superb defense throughout the series opener as the score remained 1-0 until the bottom of the ninth.
• The Wolves loaded the bases in the final regulation frame with just one out. They tied the game on a bases loaded walk before EOU ended the inning to avoid the loss.
• Eastern managed to get two runners on in the 10th on a single from
McKlane Elgin and a walk by
Brooks Dyer.
Matt Garcia scored both with a two RBI triple to center to make it 3-1.
• The Wolves looked to respond in the bottom of the 10th, but pitching secured EOU the win. Reliever
Bennett King worked a 1-2-3 frame to end the opener and give EOU a 1-0 lead.
Mountaineers Stat Leaders
•
Matt Garcia tallied two RBIs in the win and hit 1-5.
•
McKlane Elgin went 2-4 and scored one run.
• Donovan Gonzales was 1-5 as well with an RBI.
•
Jacob Farnsworth pitched two complete and had three strikeouts.
For the Wolves
• Jackson Holstad led the bats, hitting 2-3 in the loss.
• Levi Cummings scored the lone run.
• Leighton Moniz had an RBI in the loss.
• Matthew Dunaway had a game-high eight strikeouts in five innings pitched.
Game 2 – Western Oregon 2, Eastern Oregon 1
How it Happened
• The second contest was another low scoring fight that went just seven innings as the Wolves escaped with a 2-1 win despite having four errors in the game.
• Hitting was low all around as Western had the slim edge at 5-4. Defensively, the Mounties played a clean game with no errors in the contests.
• Eastern grabbed the game's first lead in the third inning thanks to three of the four errors by the Wolves coming in the frame.
Garret Kollar scored the run to give EOU a 1-0 advantage.
• Western got the run back in the fourth after working a 1-2-3 frame. The Wolves led off with a single and three batters later an RBI sacrifice fly to right scored the runner to tie the game, 1-1.
• The score was locked at a 1-1 tie until the sixth inning when the Wolves tacked on a run to secure the win. Helping them score the run was a trio of walks and a sacrifice fly.
• Three of the first four at bats were walks, allowing WOU to load the bases. EOU managed to get one out, but an RBI sacrifice fly to center scored a runner to put Western ahead 2-1.
• The Mounties were unable to respond. Western committed another error but did enough to hold on for the win and a day one split.
Mountaineers Stat Leaders
•
Brooks Dyer hit 2-4.
• Both
Donovan Gonzalez and
Noah Zohn went 1-3.
•
Davis Brown pitched 4.3 innings and fanned two batters.
For the Wolves
• Jacob Maiben was 1-2 with one RBI.
• John Stark hit 1-1 and scored a run.
• Seth Kuykendall (2-1) pitched six complete and had a game best eight strikeouts.
• Michael Moore earned the save and fanned one batter.
By the Numbers
12 - EOU has hit a double in 12 of the first 13 games this season.
16 - The Mounties left 16 runners stranded on day one against the Wolves.
8 - Eastern walked eight batters in each game on day one against Western.
3 - The Mounties' three runs scored in game one are the lowest in a win this season.
Up Next
• EOU and Western will play another doubleheader tomorrow, Feb. 20, to wrap up the series. First pitch is set for 12 and 3 p.m. PT in Monmouth.
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