KEIZER, Ore. – A wet and rainy Sunday could have dampened the spirits of the Corban University Baseball team (13-25, 7-9) and the RV College of Idaho Yotes (24-15, 8-8), but the student-athletes provided plenty of excitement and drama on the afternoon. The Warriors were able to take advantage of timely hitting from their veterans as well as solid pitching to upend the NAIA Top 25 Yotes and take the series 3-1 on the weekend.

"Couldn't be prouder of our group today. They did a tremendous job of staying with our plan and trusting each other," Warriors' Head Coach Ethan Bragg stated after the games. "Looking forward to a great series with EOU next week."

Game 1 – Corban 6, COI 4

A walk to the left fielder Jonah Hultberg started the rally for the Yotes in the top of the first. Following a dropped pop up by the Warrior third baseman Ryan Clay, shortstop Ben Gaff singled up the middle to give the Yotes an early 1-0 lead.

Senior first baseman Nainoa Ka'ahanui battled his way on base via a walk to start off the bottom of the third for the Warriors. A passed ball allowed Ka'ahanui to advance to second. A single by junior shortstop Aidan Bunn put runners on the corners for the Navy and Gold. Following a stolen base by Bunn, senior catcher Keenan O'Brien struck the ball back up the middle, leading to two runs. After subbing in freshman Michon Cole to pinch run for O'Brien, a series of blunders led to Cole scoring. First it was a pick off attempt that went wayward, allowing Cole to take third, followed by a passed ball in which Cole slid under the attempted tag of the pitcher. After the third inning, the score was 3-1 Warriors.

The Yotes wasted no time narrowing the gap in the fourth inning, starting off with a single by third baseman Jake Denison. Designated hitter Jordan Kelly followed with a single of his own to put two on with no outs. Denison was then picked off in an attempt to take third, but during the chase down, Kelly took second. Catcher Dillon Danner singled hard back up the middle, allowing the Warriors to keep Kelly at third. Center fielder Tristen Garland found a gap on the left side of the infield to make it 3-2 Warriors. The Warriors managed to get out of the top of the fourth inning giving up only one run, despite the Yotes having bases loaded and one out.

After getting out of a bases loaded jam in the bottom of the fourth inning, Gaff led off the fifth with a double to deep left center. Second baseman Kirby Robertson stepped up to the plate and bombed a home run over the left center fence to give the Yotes a 4-3 lead.

Wasting no time, sophomore third baseman Ryan Clay walked to lead off the fifth and was then moved over by his brother, junior left fielder Kyle Clay via a single. A sacrifice fly by sophomore second baseman Elijah Maris evened the score at 4 apiece.

Returning to the box in the bottom of the sixth inning, the Warriors once again capitalized on pitching mistakes from the Yotes. Sophomore designated hitter Scott Artzer singled to lead off the sixth inning. After stealing second base, Artzer was moved over to third on a sacrifice bunt by freshman pinch hitter Trey Williams. A towering fly ball by O'Brien managed to find grass, which scored Artzer from third to make it a 5-4 Warrior lead.

O'Brien continued his hot hitting on the day, stepping up to the plate in the bottom of the eighth, belted a solo home run over the left field fence to pad the Warrior lead, 6 to 4.

Sophomore Hayden Van Acker got the nod for the Warriors on the day. Van Acker went 4.0 innings, giving up four runs on eight hits. Junior Giovanni Cervantes came on in relief and pitched shut out baseball for 2.1 innings, ultimately picking up his first win of the season. Senior Jaren Childs came in and closed out the final 2.2 innings, picking up his second save of the season.

Dawson Cummins pitched for the Yotes, going 2.1 innings, giving up three runs (two earned runs). Nate Vidlak came on in relief, pitching a solid 5.2 innings giving up on three runs on the afternoon. Vidlak however, was on the hook for the loss.

Corban was carried by the bat of O'Brien on the day. Going 3 for 5 with four RBI and a home run, his fifth of the season. Ka'ahanui was a difficult out for the Yotes as well, earning two base on balls for the day.

The 5-6-7 hitters for the Yotes proved to be tough outs for the Warriors in game one. Accounting for six of the eight Yotes hits, and three RBI. Highlighting the trio was Robertson with his home run in the fifth inning, his second on the season.

Game 2 – Corban 11, COI 10

Ryan Clay started off game two with a single back up the middle. Kyle Clay then singled to the left side of the field following a passed ball which allowed Ryan Clay to second. Ryan Clay scored on the single by his brother, giving the Warriors a 1-0 lead. Maris followed Clay with a single of his own. Junior outfielder Chris Grayson singled to right field, allowing Clay to score from second and give the Warriors a 2-0 lead.

Gaff stepped up to the plate in the top of the second and drilled a double to the wall in left center field setting up the Yotes offense. Robertson, coming off his great performance in game one, singled through the left side, scoring Gaff from second and shrinking the Warrior lead to one.

Hultberg stepped up once again for the Yotes, this time delivering a lead off double to put stress on the Warrior pitching staff. First baseman Skyler Sadora then singled to left putting runners on the corners. Left fielder Alex McFarland-Smith then delivered a single, scoring Hultberg and advancing Sadora to third. Gaff then stepped up to the plate again and delivered his second double of game, scoring Sadora and putting McFarland-Smith on third. Denison grounded into a fielder's choice, which scored Gaff. Following a passed ball and a walk by the designated hitter Kris Kirkpatrick, Denison stole third. Garland was hit by pitch, which loaded the bases. A wild pitch advanced all the runners and scored Denison. Following a walk to Hultberg to load the bases once again, Sadora stepped back up to the plate and delivered a two-RBI single making the score 8-2 Yotes. An error by the right fielder led to one more run scoring making it 9-2 Yotes after the top half of the third inning.

The Warriors didn't take long to respond to the eight-run top half. Maris was hit by a pitch with one out. Junior centerfielder Brad Pellkofer singled to right putting two on with one out. Grayson was then hit by a pitch to load the bases. Redshirt freshman catcher Joshua Miyazawa worked his way on base via the walk and brought in a run to make it 9-3 Yotes. A wild pitch scored Pellkofer and shrunk the lead after three innings to five runs for the Yotes.

Trailing 10 to 4 going into the sixth inning, the Warrior bats came alive against a battered bullpen. A short hopped throw from the third started off the inning as Bunn was able to reach first. O'Brien singled through the right-side putting runners on the corners. A sacrifice fly by Ryan Clay made the game 10-5. A stolen base by O'Brien and a walk by Kyle Clay continued to put pressure on the Yotes, leading to Maris singling in O'Brien to make it a 4 run lead. Pellkofer boomed a double off the fence in left center, scoring both Clay and Maris, shrinking the lead to 2. A failed pick off attempt moved Pellkofer to third where Grayson singled him in. The momentum swing was palpable, with the lead down to one, a pitching blunder put runners on first and second, bringing up the veteran graduate student Kairos Torres-Umi pinch hit for Bunn. Torres-Umi dropped in a single, bringing in Grayson and putting the pinch runner Cole on third. With the game tied, Cole scored on a balk, resulting in the 11^th run on the day for the Warriors and ultimately the game winning run.

Coach Bragg went with a platoon style rotation in game four of the weekend. Starting sophomore Sam Greenhalgh, who went 2.0 innings, giving up three runs on the day. Calling on the bullpen in the third inning, senior Alex Hakes had a rough 0.2 innings, giving up six hits and six runs. Bragg then turned to junior Brian Landon, who turned in a fantastic 2.1 innings, only giving up one run on one hit. It helped stunt the Yotes momentum and set up Childs for the remainder of the game. Childs came in and threw 4.0 shut out innings, ultimately getting his second win on the season.

The Yotes pitching rotation could not find a rhythm in game two of the day. Starting with Kris Kirkpatrick pitching only 1.0 inning, despite only giving up one run. Jackson Cummins and Willie Shirts combined for 4.0 innings of work, giving up three runs on three hits. Where it all fell apart on the afternoon was the substitution of Colby Durski, who could not find a groove against the Warriors. Durski pitched 1.0 inning, allowing five runs total on four hits and ultimately gave up the winning run that resulted in his third loss on the season. Gaff came in and provided two shutout innings following Durski.

The 3-4-5-6 hitters provided firepower and timely hitting for the Warrior lineup. Combining to go 8 of 17 in the game with six of the 11 RBI, as well as scoring seven of the runs. On the afternoon, the Warriors went to the plate 34 times and either walked or got a hit 16 of those at bats. The efficiency in which they were able to continue constant pressure allowed the incredible comeback to take place.

The battle of the 3-4-5-6 hitters didn't just include the Warrior bats, but the Yotes bats as well. Going 7 for 20 on the day with six RBI, the platoon of hitters made life difficult on any pitcher they faced. The one number the Yotes would like to go back and take advantage of is the eight players left on base.

The Navy and Gold will be on display one last time this season at Volcanoes Stadium. The Warriors will take on Eastern Oregon University on Saturday at 12pm and 3pm. Sunday will be Senior Day for the program, which will start at 11am with a second game happening at approximately 2pm.

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