BOX SCORES – GAME #1 | GAME #2

SALEM, Ore. – Freshman Stephanie Nippert (Rocklin, Calif.) tied Game #2 with a two-out double in the seventh inning before junior Jessie Jones (Gladstone, Ore.) drew a bases loaded walk with two outs in the eighth inning, as Corban's softball team earned a double header split with Oregon Tech, 7-5 & 6-5 in eight innings, Saturday at Warrior Field.

Following its second straight split this weekend, Corban finds itself at 12-17 overall and 4-4 in Cascade Collegiate Conference play. Meanwhile, Oregon Tech is now 16-15 overall and 4-2 in league action.

Nippert led the Warriors' offense with a combined 4-for-7 performance that included one run scored and three runs batted in, while three other Warriors – senior Rachel Kazmierski (Eugene, Ore.), freshman Erica Fitzgerald (Beaverton, Ore.), and freshman Liane DeHart (Kent, Wash.) – collected three hits each on the afternoon.

Junior Makenzie Marchbanks (Sweet Home, Ore.) registered her team-leading 14th complete game of the season in the opener allowing seven runs (six earned) on nine hits to go along with a game-high seven strikeouts. Sophomore Brittany Wagner (Oregon City, Ore.) would go the opening 7.0 innings in Game #2 allowing five earned runs on 12 hits before turning the ball over the Marchbanks for the final three outs en route to picking up the come-from-behind victory.

GAME #1 – OREGON TECH 7, CORBAN 5

The opener would begin with a flurry of Owls runs, as the opening three batters reached base safely before Taylor Schmidt registered a one-out grand slam for an early 4-0 lead.

Corban would cut the visiting Owls' lead in half in the bottom of the first when freshman Tamara Feb (Oregon City, Ore.) brought home Nippert with a double to right field before scoring the Warriors' second run on a fielding error by OIT's first baseman to make the score 4-2.

The host Warriors would take a one run lead (5-4) in the second inning on Fitzgerald's RBI single through the left side that scored Jones. Freshman Katie Steigleman (Eugene, Ore.) would begin the scoring on a wild pitch with the bases loaded before Nippert singled through the right side to score senior Rebecca Franke (Pendleton, Ore.) and knot the score at 4-4.

Oregon Tech would tie the game for the second time in the top of the third inning when Brittany Cherry registered a two-out home run over the left field fence that knotted things at 5-all.

The visiting Owls would score the eventual game-winning run in the top of the sixth inning on Ashleigh Larson's run-scoring single up the middle that plated Bree Larson before Cherry brought home OIT's final run via a ground out in the seventh inning for the final tally of 7-5.

Oregon Tech was led offensively by Ashleigh Larson, who went a perfect 3-for-3 to go along with Schmidt's four-RBI performance. OIT's Becca Anderson pitched the opening 2.0 innings allowing five runs (four earned) on six hits before turning the ball over to Mikey Eustance for the final 5.0 innings en route to picking up the victory.

GAME #2 – CORBAN 6, OREGON TECH 5 (8 INNINGS)

The finale would begin with Oregon Tech scoring first on a Jess Plummer double that brought home Andria Wheatley before Jones tied things in Corban's half of the first via a stolen base that made the score 1-1.

Oregon Tech would push its lead to 4-1 over the next two innings with three unanswered runs that included Schmidt's second home run of the afternoon via a two-run blast in the top of the third inning that plated the Owls' third and fourth runs.

Corban would pull within a single run (4-3) in the bottom of the fourth inning when Kazmierski brought home Feb via an infield single before Fitzgerald scored following a OIT throwing error on the same play.

Oregon Tech would grab a two-run lead (5-3) in the top of the fifth inning when Cherry drove home Plummer via a single up the middle for OIT's final run of the night cap.

The host Warriors would score their fourth run in the bottom of the fifth inning when Nippert registered a run-scoring single to center field that scored DeHart before Nippert was thrown out at second attempting to stretch her hit one extra base.

Neither team would score again until the bottom of the seventh inning when DeHart registered a two-out single before coming around to score on Nippert's game-tying double to right center that knotted things at 5-5.

Marchbanks would relieve Wagner in the top of the eighth inning, as Corban's ace shut down OIT's bat-attack with a pair of strikeouts with runners on first and second to set up the Warriors' final inning heroics.

Corban's final at-bat would begin with a Fitzgerald lead-off single before she advanced to third on a Kazmierski's one-out double to center field. Following an intentional walk to Steigleman, Jones drew a five-pitch game-ending walk one batter later for the one-run Warrior win, 6-5.

Oregon Tech was led offensively by Wheatley's 3-for-4 performance, while three other Owls registered two hits each in Game #2. Schmidt would go the opening 6.0 innings for OIT allowing four runs (two earned) on eight hits before giving way to Amber Knight for 1.1 innings and Eustance for 0.1 innings, as Knight suffered the heart-breaking loss after she loaded the bases in the extra frame.

Corban will return to the field on Friday, April 2nd, against the Mountaineers of Eastern Oregon in a mid-afternoon double header beginning at 2:00 p.m. in La Grande.