Cascade Collegiate Conference recap for April 28-30

The Oregon Tech Hustlin’ Owls won their first conference championship since 1982. The Owls and British Columbia had identical conference records, but the Owls won the tie-breaker based on their records against third-place College of Idaho.

British Columbia won three of four vs. Corban

The Thunderbirds won the first game 11-1. The game ended with the mercy rule in the bottom of the seventh, when Brandon Hupe hit a two-run home run. Sean Heppner went the seven-inning distance for the Thunderbirds, allowed one run on six hits, struck out 12. The Thunderbirds got to Warriors ace Nate Martin in the bottom of the first, with a two-run home run by Mike Fitzsimmons and a sacrifice fly by Trent Lenihan. Lenihan hit an RBI double in the third inning, and Kyle Anderson a two-RBI single, followed by an RBI single by Aaron Marsh. Brett Corbeth hit a two-RBI triple in the fourth inning. Marsh finished 3-for-4. Box score

The Thunderbirds got their second mercy-rule win of the day in the second game, 11-0 (7 innings). Ryan Beitel went the distance for the Thunderbirds, allowed two hits, struck out eight. The Thunderbirds got the only run they needed with an RBI single by Trent Lenihan in the bottom of the second. He scored the insurance run on a single by Kyle Anderson. Brandon Hupe hit a two-RBI double later in the game. David Draayers went 2-for-4 with two RBI. Recap Box score

The Warriors did much better in the third game, winning 9-5 and ending the Thunderbirds’ hope of winning the conference pennant. The Warriors led all the way, and three Warrior pitchers held the Thunderbirds to seven hits. They started the scoring in the top of the first with an RBI double by Kyle Clay and an RBI double by Elijah Maris (transfer from Hawaii Pacific). They added two unearned runs in the top of the second when Ryan Clay reached on an error. That chased Thunderbird starter Daniel Orfaly. He was relieved by Daniel Sereda, who gave up two more runs on RBI singles by Kairos Torres-Umi and Brad Pellkofer, and the Warriors led 6-1 after 4 ½ innings. The wheels nearly came off for the Warriors in the bottom of the fifth. Starter Hayden Van Acker walked the first four batters, and was relieved by Giovanni Cervantes (Agua Prieta, Mexico). He immediately threw a wild pitch, which allowed the second run of the inning to score. Trent Lenihan hit a two-RBI double, and the Thunderbirds were now behind only 6-5. That was as close as the Thunderbirds got. They had the tying run on third in the sixth inning, but the inning ended with a double play. The Warriors extended their lead to 7-5 in the eighth on an RBI single by Aidan Bunn. The Thunderbirds stranded a runner on third in the bottom of the eighth. The Warriors then put it away with two runs in the top of the ninth with a two-RBI double by Reese Fawley. Van Acker got the win, but submariner Trevor Szczepanek got a major save; 3 2/3 innings pitched, no runs on two hits, two strikeouts. Box score

The Thunderbirds won the fourth game 9-2. They started the scoring with a two-run home run by Brandon Hupe in the bottom of the first inning, then scored six runs in the bottom of the second on a two-RBI single by Aaron Marsh and a grand slam home run by Jonny McGill. This made British Columbia players and fans wondering where these runs were in the previous game, when they needed the win to stay in the pennant hunt. The Thunderbirds got one more in the third on an RBI double by Russell Young. After that, Ryan Heppner, James Brock, Adam Khan, and Vicarte Domingo kept the Warriors scoreless until the eighth inning. Heppner, who got the win, allowed three hits, struck out three. The other three didn’t allowed a hit, and Domingo struck out three of the four batters he faced. With nothing on the line in this game, both teams emptied their benches. Evan Hoegler, who pitched the ninth inning for the Thunderbirds, made his first appearance of the season, allowed one hit, and recorded one strikeout. Recap Box score

Lewis-Clark State won three of four at Bushnell

The Beacons won the first game 12-8. The Warriors had an early 5-2 lead, but the Beacons took the lead for good with four runs in the bottom of the third, on an RBI single by Jordan Wilson, a sacrifice fly by Brandon Reed, and a two RBI double by Cade Crist. They added two runs in the fourth on a home run by Wilson, and got the winning run in the fifth on a two-run home run by Crist. Crist had a huge game; two home runs, a double, and five RBI. Wilson finished 3-for-5 with three RBI. Starter Ethan Sachs got the win; he pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowed six earned runs on nine hits, struck out four. Sam Olsson hit a three-run home run late in the game for the Warriors. Jakob Marquez hit a solo home run and Charlie Updegrave hit a two-run home run in the early going. Box score

The Warriors won the second game 16-6, halted by the mercy rule after seven innings. The Warriors started off with home runs by Carter Booth, Sam Olsson, and Charlie Updegrave in the top of the first inning. The Beacons answered with five runs in the bottom of the first, led by a three-run home run by Noah Montoya. Warriors starter Decker Stedman was chased without recording an out, and the game was tied 5-5 after one inning. Neither team scored in the second inning. The Warriors proceeded to put it away with six runs in the top of the third. The Beacons were done in by two errors, which allowed Booth to come to bat and hit a three run home run. The Warriors added five more runs on the fifth, including a grand slam by Olsson and a solo home run by Jakob Marquez. Meanwhile, the Beacons were held scoreless for three innings by Jake Green, who relieved Stedman, then Drake George pitched the last four innings, allowed one run on three hits. Olsson finished 3-for-4, had a total of five RBI. Recap Box score

The Warriors won the third game 8-1, and with it, fourth place in the conference, and a spot in the conference tournament. Jace Hanson, Jantzen Lucas, and Greg Blackman combined to hold the Beacons to one run on eight hits, and 15 strikeouts. The Beacons were shut out until the seventh inning. Isaiah Thomas scored the winning run in the fourth inning when Carter Booth reached on a fielder’s choice. Thomas hit a three-run home run later in the game. Box score

The Warriors won the fourth game 17-2. The Warriors led all the way, but didn’t put it away until they scored five runs in the top of the seventh inning, on home runs by Charlie Updegrave, Isaiah Thomas, and Carter Booth. They added six more in the eighth, led by a two-RBI double by Noah Weintraub. However, it was Jakob Marquez who did the most damage; 4-for-6 with a home run, two doubles, and four RBI. Starter Dallas McGill got the win; he pitched five innings, allowed two runs on three hits, struck out four. Recap Box score

College of Idaho swept four games at Eastern Washington

The Coyotes won the first game 7-5. The Mountaineers took a 5-4 lead in the bottom of the eighth with RBI doubles by Mario Landeros and Danny Burns. However, the Coyotes answered with a three-run home run by Skyler Sadora in the top of the ninth. Kris Kirkpatrick pinch-hit a two-run home run earlier in the game. Landeros finished 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI. Nick Eliason started and went seven innings, allowed two earned runs on four hits, struck out six. However, Nate Vidlak got the win; he pitched the final two innings, was charged with one run on three hits. Box score

The Coyotes won the second game 16-3, halted by the mercy rule after seven innings. They got all the runs they needed in the first two innings, on a three-run home run by Ben Gaff, and a two-run home run by Skyler Sadora. Kris Kirkpatrick hit two home runs later in the game, had four RBI. Kirby Robertson went the seven-inning distance for the Coyotes, allowed three runs on seven hits, struck out four. Recap Box score

The Coyotes won the third game 17-9. They started the game with a two-run home run by Jonah Hultberg and a three-run home run by Jake Denison in the top of the first. Ben Hansen added a home run in the second, then the Coyotes put it away with six runs in the fourth, led by a two-RBI single by Alex McFarland-Smith and a three-run home run by Jordan Kelly. The Mountaineers did get closer with two runs in the bottom of the fifth and five runs in the sixth, led by a two-RBI double by Easton Watterson. However, they didn’t score again until the bottom of the ninth, and the Coyotes added runs in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings. The Coyotes used six pitchers; starter Dawson Cummins got the win, went five innings, allowed three runs on seven hits, struck out six. Box score

The Coyotes completed the sweep with an 11-6 win. They started the scoring in the top of the first with a sacrifice fly by Alex McFarland-Smith, followed by a three-run home run by Kirby Robertson. In the second inning, Jonah Hultberg hit a two-RBI single, then McFarland-Smith hit an RBI double for the winning run. Starter Kris Kirkpatrick got the win; he pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowed one run on four hits, struck out eight. Recap Box score The Mountaineers finished the season 3-39.

Oregon Tech swept a double-header vs. Simpson

The Hustlin’ Owls played two games against Simpson, of Redding, CA and the CalPac Conference. They were 18-21 coming in, 11-10 in conference play. The Owls won the first game 25-7, halted by the mercy rule after seven innings. The Red Hawks actually led 7-6 going into the bottom of the third inning, but they were shut out the rest of the way, while the Owls scored five runs in the bottom of the third, including a two-RBI triple by Matthew Ortiz, and five more in the bottom of the fourth, led by a two-RBI single by Bryce Petrilla. Lalo Barraza got the win in relief; he pitched three perfect innings, struck out one. Ortiz finished 4-for-4 with a triple, a double, three RBI, and four runs scored. Box score

The Owls won the second game 10-5. The game was tied 3-3 going into the bottom of the third, when the Owls put it away with five runs; a sacrifice fly by Alonzo Vergara, Bryce Petrilla scoring on a failed pickoff attempt, an RBI single by Matthew Ortiz, and a two-RBI single by Tyler Horner. Ortiz had another big game; 4-for-5 with a triple and three RBI. Starter Brendan Talonen got the win; he pitched five innings, allowed three runs on three hits, struck out four. Recap Box score

Next Week:

Cascade Collegiate Conference tournament at Steen Sports Park, Klamath Falls, OR, May 6-8. Video

First day: British Columbia vs. C. of Idaho, 11 AM
Oregon Tech vs. Lewis-Clark State, 2:30 PM

Final Standings