CALDWELL, Idaho – For the first time since 2006, the Eastern Oregon University softball team is headed postseason play.

With a twinbill split with College of Idaho (COI) on Sunday afternoon, the Mountaineers clinched the No. 2 seed out of the East Division in the 2016 Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Tournament.

After compiling just four hits and dropping game one by an 8-0 decision, EOU jumped to a 4-0 lead midway through game two en route to taking down the Yotes, 5-3. 

GAME ONE
COI 8, EOU 0 (SIX INNINGS)
EOU's offense never got going, and the Mountaineers tied a season-high with five errors in an 8-0 defeat to COI in game one.

Sophomore second baseman Maryssa Santi doubled for EOU, while senior first baseman Marisa Gonzalez, junior designated player Lauren Burchak, and junior left fielder Taylor Gerlach tallied one hit apiece.

In the circle, junior pitcher Haylie Van Laethem yielded 14 hits and tossed one strikeout in the losing effort.

For the Yotes, Katie Rowe went 3-for-4 at the dish, and Cortni Pena compiled seven strikeouts while only walking three batters.

COI's first three runs of the ball game came via errors by the Mountaineers, and the Yotes later took a 4-0 advantage in the fifth inning after an RBI single by Delaney Atkins.

Meanwhile, EOU failed to find any luck on the offensive end, compiling only four hits in the contest.

The Mountaineers gave themselves a chance in the fourth, loading the bases with only one out after two walks and a single by Gonzalez. However, COI managed to escape the jam with a strikeout and a force out, keeping EOU scoreless.

With a 4-0 advantage in the sixth, COI plated four more runs on five hits to end the game in six innings.

GAME TWO
EOU 5, COI 3
A three-run double by senior shortstop Haley Hess in the fourth inning gave EOU a four-run lead midway through the ball game, and sophomore pitcher Hailey Kline tossed nine strikeouts to propel the Mountaineers in game two, 5-3.

Hess went 3-for-4 at the dish with a game-high three RBI, while Gonzalez batted 2-for-3 with an RBI as well.

Kline faced 30 batters en route to collecting her 14th victory of the 2016 campaign. She walked only one batter and forced eight fly outs.

Ashley Pesek hit 2-for-3 with two RBI for COI (17-20-1, 9-15 CCC), and she also suffered the loss in the circle after giving up four earned runs in the opening four stanzas.

EOU attacked right away, launching two hits and loading the bases in the first en route to snagging a 1-0 lead. Hess opened the frame with an infield single, and then junior left fielder Taylor Turner followed with a sacrifice bunt. A COI fielding error put junior right fielder Cheyenne Barker at first, and then Gonzalez plated Hess with a single up the middle.

In the fourth, the Mountaineers tacked on three runs on three hits, including a three-run double by Hess to extend their advantage to four (4-0). After the Yotes got a force out at home to notch the second out of the inning, Hess cleared the bases with a smack to left field to make it a four-run game.

Although COI plated its first run of the game in the fourth via an RBI double, EOU made up for in the fifth, as Gonzalez made her way home thanks to a fielding error by the Yotes.

COI made things interesting in the seventh, as the top of the order cut EOU's advantage to two (5-3) after an RBI double by Katelyn Geyer. With two outs and the tying run at the plate, Kline forced a foul out to hold off the late rally and seal the victory.

GAME BALL GOES TO…
Hess – The senior's three-run double in the fourth inning of game two changed the complexion of the affair, as EOU held on for a 5-3 victory to clinch its first postseason appearance since 2006.  

UP NEXT
EOU (25-21, 14-10 CCC) will face West Division No. 3 seed Corban on May 6 in Ashland, Ore., at 9 a.m. To view the complete bracket, click here.