BOX SCORES – GAME #1 | GAME #2

VANCOUVER, B.C. – In windy, cold, and rainy conditions, Corban's baseball team dropped a pair of league games to the NAIA's No. 9-ranked Thunderbirds of British Columbia, 18-1 & 9-1, Friday afternoon at Thunderbird Park.

With today's result, Corban falls to 8-22 overall and 2-13 in NAIA West play. Meanwhile, British Columbia improved to 23-6 and 16-2 in league action.

Junior Tyler Lake (Medford, Ore.) and freshman Craig Baker (Meridian, Idaho) each went 2-for-3 at the plate, while Baker pitched three complete innings in the night cap against the nationally-ranked T-birds.

GAME #1 – BRITISH COLUMBIA 18, CORBAN 1

In Friday's opener, British Columbia scored 12 unanswered runs over the opening five innings before Corban finally got on the board in the top of the sixth.

The visiting Warriors got a lead off infield single from freshman pinch hitter Kris Bos (Jerome, Idaho) before Baker drew a walk and senior Mitch Riddle (Pullman, Wash.) singled to left field to load the bases with one out. Freshman Kyle Kunkel (Bremerton, Wash.) then drove in Corban's lone run in Game #1 via a fielder's choice that forced junior pinch runner Kyle Lamson (Medford, Ore.) out at second, while allowing Bos to score from third.

British Columbia would score five more runs over the next two innings en route to securing the 17-run victory (18-1) behind the pitching of Eric Brown, Matt Bannister, and Jordan Herbison.

Baker led Corban's offense with a 2-for-3 performance, while five other Warriors – senior Josh Warner (Independence, Ore.), sophomore Jonathan Ramirez (New Britain, Conn.), Bos, Riddle, and Kunkel – each recorded one hit. On the mound, freshman Jacob Kopra (Gresham, Ore.) went the opening 3.0 innings allowing eight runs (seven earned) on six hits before turning the ball over to sophomore Tyler Doornink (Yakima, Wash.) and freshman Caleb Virtue (Vancouver, Wash.) for the final 5.0 innings.

British Columbia was led by Sean Pisarski, who went 4-for-6 with two runs batted in to go along with Keaton Briscoe and Bob Foerster's three hits each. Brown went the opening 6.0 innings for the T-birds allowing one earned run on seven hits before Bannister and Herbison combined to pitch three nearly perfect innings en route to helping Brown to the victory.

GAME #2 – BRITISH COLUMBIA 9, CORBAN 1

The night cap began with British Columbia scoring first before Corban knotted the game in the top of the third inning on junior Luke Balbas' (Boise, Idaho) sacrifice hit that allowed Warner to score following his lead off double to left field.

Unfortunately that would be the last time that the game was tied, as British Columbia plated eight unanswered runs that included four in the fourth and four more in the sixth for the eight-run win (9-1).

Lake would lead Corban's bat-attack with a 2-for-3 performance, while Warner and freshman Jake Balbas (Meridian, Idaho) registered a hit each for the visiting Warriors. Baker would go the opening 3.0 innings allowing five runs (four earned) on six hits before handing the ball to Lamson for the game's final 3.0 innings.

British Columbia would get a trio of two-hit performances from Briscoe, Pisarski, and Sammie Starr, while Sheldon McDonald pitched the opening 4.0 innings for the Thunderbirds allowing one earned run on four hits before turning the ball over to Dan Britton-Foster for the final three perfect innings.

Both teams will return to the field tomorrow for the final two games of this weekend's four-game series between Corban and British Columbia beginning at 11:00 a.m. at Thunderbird Park in Vancouver, British Columbia.