SANTA CLARITA, Calif. – The Corban University baseball team almost pulled off its second upset of the No. 11-ranked team in the NAIA in a week, but the Warriors ended up falling in 10 innings to The Master's University on Monday afternoon, 2-1.
"We will need to make some offensive and defensive adjustments next week in practice," said Corban head coach Jeff McKay. "We played some good baseball this week against very good teams. We have identified where we need to improve to beat the best teams. We will do that this week in practice to get ready for the conference opener."
Corban allowed one run in the first inning, giving the 11th-ranked Mustangs the early lead. After the early run, Warrior pitcher Kris Jackson locked in on the mound, pitching five innings while allowing just three hits and striking out four.
Corban's bullpen then continued to shut down The Master's, and offensively, the Warriors rallied to load the bases in the eighth inning. Unfortunately, Corban hit into an inning-ending double play to squash the opportunity.
Corban did put on the rally-caps in the ninth frame, however, and took advantage of a couple of Mustangs' miscues en route to tying the game. The Warriors did have the chance with the bases loaded and the game tied in the ninth to push in front, but were unable to get the key hit when it was needed.
In the bottom of the ninth, The Master's loaded the bases with no one out, but Zach Penrod was able to get out of the jam and force extra innings with a double play and a strikeout.
After a scoreless top of the 10th frame, the Mustangs ended up scoring the winning run in the bottom of the inning, taking advantage of a Warrior defensive miscue to win the contest.
In the non-conference defeat, Ryan Rosas went 3-for-5 at the dish, while Jackson Smith, Penrod, and Josh Ebert each recorded a hit for the Warriors. On the mound in addition to Kris Jackson's performance, Dom Baker threw two innings of shutout ball and Connor Mattison threw one inning, allowing no runs.
"The pitching really showed on this trip that it can be very effective," said McKay. "We are looking forward to coming home. We come home a better team than when we left. We will be ready for playing at home."
Corban (6-7) returns to Salem this weekend for its home-opening series against Oregon Tech. With a new look to this weekend's schedule, Corban will play a single game on Friday evening at Volcanoes Stadium at 5:30 p.m. to kick off conference play. The Warriors and Owls will then play a pair of 12 p.m. doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday, with the second game on Sunday being a non-conference contest.
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