BOX SCORE 1 | BOX SCORE 2 SALEM – With two of the top pitchers in the NAIA West taking the mound in separate games of Friday's doubleheader, Corban and British Columbia split the two contests played at Warrior Field.

Corban won the opener, 8-3, as Jacob Kopra improved his season record to 8-0. Visiting British Columbia, with ace left-hander Conor Lillis-White throwing a complete-game three-hitter, took the second contest by a 5-0 score.

With the split Corban is now 25-18 overall and 14-8 in the conference, while British Columbia sees its record go to 24-10 overall and 15-7. The T-Birds are in second place in the league, trailing Lewis-Clark State and leading Corban by one game.

CORBAN 8, BRITISH COLUMBIA 3

Kopra, a senior right-hander, did not allow a hit until one out in the seventh inning, and then he almost didn't survive the frame as the Thunderbirds scored three runs on four hits. Freshman left-hander Daniel Aranda entered the game in the eighth and pitched the final two innings, not allowing a base runner and striking out one, to earn his fourth save of the season.

The Warriors opened the scoring with two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning, and it was hitting hero Jon Mercer who got things going with a leadoff double just inside the third base bag and down the line. Landon Frost put down a sacrifice bunt and also reached on a throwing error, and Gregg Romero drove in Mercer with a ground out. Daniel Orr then hit an opposite-field double to the left field corner to score Frost, giving Corban a 2-0 advantage.

The hosts made it 4-0 with two more runs in the sixth inning, and again Mercer was part of the scoring. With Ryan Rosas on third base and two out, Mercer put down a perfect drag bunt single to drive in Rosas. After Mercer stole second, Frost hit a run-scoring double to left-center field.

British Columbia finally got to an otherwise dominant Kopra in the seventh. Following a leadoff walk and a fielder's choice ground ball, Jerod Bartnik drilled a single to left field for UBC's first hit of the game. Bryan Arthur followed with a RBI base hit, and then Cam Firth bunted for a single, at the same time driving in the team's second run. The final run of the inning came on a bases-loaded fielder's choice by Sebastian Wong.

Now holding a slim 4-3 lead, the Warriors iced the game with four runs on three hits and an error in the bottom of the eighth. Mercer hit a two-run single through the middle of the infield and Orr added a two-run double to right field to highlight the uprising.

Mercer, batting in the No. 9 spot in the order, was 4-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBI, and Orr was 2-for-5 with three runs batted in.
The Thunderbirds managed just four hits against the combined efforts of Kopra and Aranda.

Jeremy Newton, the UBC starter and one of four T-Birds to pitch, took the loss and is 2-2 this season.

BRITISH COLUMBIA 5, CORBAN 0

Lillis-White came into the game with a 5-0 record and a miniscule 0.77 earned run average, and he was as good as advertised. He faced six batters over the minimum and allowed only three base runners as far as second base. His final line showed seven strikeouts, one walk and 99 total pitches.

Corban starter Austin Guzzon, 5-4 this season, struggled with his control throughout the game but still battled through seven innings and 118 pitches. He allowed two runs on four hits while walking five and striking out four.

The T-Birds took a 1-0 lead in the second on Matt Spillman's two-out RBI single to center, and the score stayed that way until the visitors added four runs in the eighth. Cam Firth hit a two-run double and Wong added a RBI base hit in the inning.

UBC managed just six hits in the game, led by Spillman with two. Corban's three hits, meanwhile, came from Ryan Rosas, Vince Gonzalez and Mercer in the six through eight spots in the batting order. Mercer finished the two games with five hits in six at-bats.

The two teams finish their NAIA West series with another doubleheader scheduled to start at 11 a.m. Saturday.