PORTLAND, Ore. – A rare single-game matchup in non-conference play awaited the Corban University Baseball team earlier this afternoon north of the I-5 corridor, where the NCAA DIII Lewis & Clark College Pioneers took the midweek contest 26-3 on their newly established home turf.
"Not the result we wanted/expected today," Warriors' head coach Ryan Harris shared. "Not a whole lot that we can build off of from this result alone. We need to go to work and get things right from all angles of the game. Overall, we need to find ways to stay locked in and motivated. I know that the results haven't been in our favor lately, but we need to control what we can on our side of the field, and in the case of today it's our attitude and our level of effort. We have some big game this weekend, so it's time to flush this one and come out to practice with a new mentality."
A forgettable first inning for the Warriors (6-24) eventually resulted in the lopsided victory for the Pioneers (12-11-1), who rattled off an eight-run opening offensive half to pick up the non-conference win. Corban was able to score a trio of runs in the top of the second and fourth innings, but the damage done was already too immense as Lewis & Clark continued bringing hot bats to the plate no matter what the Navy and Gold threw at them.
As expected in an out-of-league-play game, both programs used a contingency of arms to allow their roster depth some field time, with each team utilizing a total of eight pitchers over the course of the nine-inning affair. Corban freshman starting pitcher Avery Williamson was responsible for the loss after allowing seven runs off four hits and three walks in the opening frame, while L&C starter Brett Pierson earned the win in a scoreless inning of work.
Warriors' junior third baseman Ryan Clay was one of two student-athletes with multiple hits for the visiting team, adding an RBI to the mix as well. Senior centerfielder Brad Pellkofer was 2-for-4 on the day on the day, while graduate student first baseman Nainoa Ka'ahanui added to his team-leading batting average with a double to right field in the third inning.
The Pioneers saw multi-hit performances from six different team members, as third baseman Tommy Valero and leftfielder Jakob Ghammachi both tied for the game-high in hits with three base knocks apiece. Ghammachi was also the leader in RBI with five this afternoon, while tying with designated hitter Brennan Davis in runs scored at three each.
Corban baseball is scheduled to host Cascade Collegiate Conference foe Eastern Oregon University (11-23, 2-10) this upcoming Friday for the first two games of a four-game series, slated to begin at 3pm at Volcanoes Stadium.
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