KEIZER, Ore. – The first two of four matchups between the Corban University Baseball team and RV University of British Columbia over a three-day span teetered the Thunderbirds' way this afternoon and evening at Volcanoes Stadium, as the T-Birds jumped out to an early lead in game one that finished 10-3 then completed an eight-run comeback in the second via a 10-9 final score to harsh the Warriors' dreams of snapping their losing skid.
"Game one I thought we gave UBC too many extra opportunities from making errors defensively," shared Warriors' head coach Ryan Harris earlier today. "They are one the best hitting teams in our conference and when you give them extra chances, they will drive runs in. We are trending in the right direction offensively. We built an inning in game one to tie the game up and just fell flat after that. Game two we developed a good plan at the plate and our guys delivered in the first third of the game. We just need to continue the trend of staying confident and executing the plan and control what we can control. We have one game tomorrow and have an opportunity to keep building."
Game 1 – (RV) UBC 10, Corban 3
A three-run top of the first for the Thunderbirds (17-9, 12-3) set the tone early for UBC and despite a three-run offensive inning of their own for the Warriors (6-20, 2-13) in the third, British Columbia added runs in both the fifth and sixth and rode a quality start from southpaw Will Anderson to their 10-3 series opener victory.
Corban senior starting pitcher Chris Shaffer went 5.0+ innings and allowed seven earned runs off 12 hits and three walks while striking out three batters along the way. Junior relief pitcher Casey Henderson tossed the final 4.0 frames and saw just a single run scored off two hits and a walk while inducing five groundball and six flyball outs.
Anderson picked up his second win of 2025 with a 6.0 outing, allowing all three Corban runs to score on six hits, two walks, and three punchouts. Reliever Adam Khan kept the Warriors in check the remainder of the contest with just two base runners permitted in 3.0 innings of action.
The Corban offense was led by junior shortstop Isaac Bateman and junior designated hitter Peyton Rickard in game one, as the duo tallied two hits apiece while each recording an RBI. Senior third baseman Ryan Clay, sophomore leftfielder Lucas Mertlich, and redshirt sophomore second baseman Ethan Ammerman each secured a base hit as well.
British Columbia rightfielder Mitchell Middlemiss was unstoppable at the plate in game one for the T-Birds, as he was 4-for-4 with four RBI and a pair of runs scored from the No. 5-overall spot on the UBC lineup card. First baseman Trent Lenihan and catcher Kyle Yip each tallied three hits apiece and at least one RBI.
Game 2 – (RV) UBC 10, Corban 9
Game two was all Navy and Gold early as the Warriors jumped on Thunderbirds' starting pitcher Ryan Beitel over the first three innings, as three different Corban student-athletes launched home runs, beginning in the first when Clay blasted his fifth longball of the year to give his program a 2-0 lead.
After UBC earned a run back in the second, Rickard kickstarted a seven-run frame for Corban in the third with a bases-clearing double to deep center field, followed by a three-run bomb by Mertlich two batters later. On the very next at-bat, junior centerfielder Chase Elliott pelted his second home run of the season to end the massive offensive showcase for the Navy and Gold with a 9-1 lead through three innings.
However, the offense was unable put any more runs on the board for the remainder of the contest and slowly but surely, the Thunderbirds chipped away at their eight-run deficit, putting at least one run on the scoreboard every inning from the fourth through the eighth frames to turn a 9-1 shortfall into a 10-9 lead entering the bottom of the ninth and representing Corban's final opportunity to reverse their shortcomings on the mound. Clay would single to right field with two outs in the inning, yet a fielder's choice on the next at-bat wrapped up the doubleheader sweep for UBC.
Warriors' redshirt junior starting pitcher Josephan Gonzalez fanned four T-Bird batters yet saw six runs scored against his average in 5.0+ innings, with ten hits and a pair of walks stacking up against the NCAA DIII transfer. A quartet of relief pitchers all tossed a single frame for Coach Harris surrendering various sums of runs, with Bateman eventually taking the loss in his first trip to the mound this season. Rickard was the only pitcher in game two with a scoreless outing as he pitched the top of the ninth and allowed just one runner to reach base.
Beitel received the no-decision after allowing all nine runs for Corban in 2.2 innings off an equally impressive nine hits, with two free passes issued and a single strikeout. Relief pitcher Dylan Myttenar picked up the win after holding the Warriors to just two hits and no runs with six strikeouts and a pair of walks, while closer James Brock worked a two-inning save with two strikeouts and just the single from Clay representing his only blemish.
Redshirt junior designated hitter Joshua Miyazawa went 2-for-3 from the leadoff spot of the Corban lineup and scored two of his team's nine runs, while Clay matched his four-year teammate with two hits, two RBI, and two runs scored. Rickard and Mertlich both tied for the game-high in RBI with three apiece on their bases-clearing double and three-run homer, respectively.
In his first start of the weekend, British Columbia shortstop David Draayers was the catalyst for the UBC offense, as he finished 4-for-5 with three RBI and a pair of runs scored from the seven-hole in the lineup. The second, third, and cleanup batters in the T-Birds' lineup, represented by leftfielder Jonny McGill, Lenihan, and third baseman Aaron Marsh, were a combined 6-for-12 with three RBI and four runs scored.
The Warriors and Thunderbirds will play a pair of single morning contests over the next two days, with game three of the four-game slate scheduled for a 9am first pitch tomorrow back at Volcanoes Stadium.
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