KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – No. 15 Mountaineers Softball kicked off postseason play in style as they won both games on day one of the 2022 Cascade Collegiate Conference Championships, presented by U.S. Bank. Eastern Oregon won its first game, 8-1, over sixth-seeded Corban and followed up with a 3-1 win over No. 8 and second-seeded Southern Oregon.

With the day one sweep, the Mountaineers improve to 41-13 overall and are just two wins away from winning the CCC Tournament Title. The 41 wins for EOU is also tied for the most in a single season in program history. The win total ties with the 1999 squad that head coach Nicole Christian was a key player on.

Game 1 - No. 15 Eastern Oregon 8, Corban 1
How it Happened
• Timely hitting combined with stout defense and pitching was key in the Mounties seven-run over Corban (19-34) in their first game of the day.
• Eastern and Corban were locked in a 1-1 through four frames, but it was a two-run fifth and five run sixth inning by the Mounties that surged them to the win.
• Starter Amanda Smith was superb in the win, pitching her 18th complete game of the year. She held the Warriors to a measly two hits. EOU's defense did not commit an error as well.
• Eastern got on the board in the bottom of the first as the designated home team. Caitlin Crist got on with a leadoff walk and was scored on a Hannah Tyree RBI single.
• Through the first three innings, Smith and the Mounties defense were locked in and forced 1-2-3 frames in that span. EOU threatened to score with two on in the third, but Corban escaped the jam.
• The Warriors ended their scoring drought in the fourth inning. A leadoff double got a runner on and immediately stole third. An RBI groundout scored the run to tie the game at 1-all.
• Eastern quickly retook the lead in the fifth with back-to-back hits. Crist led off with a single and was plated home on a Madison Stateler RBI double to make it a 2-1 game.
• In the next at bat, Hannah Tyree laid a smooth sacrifice bunt to advance Stateler to third base. Taylor Dow then knocked an RBI groundout to second, scoring Stateler for the 3-1 edge.
• Following a quick three-up, three-down outing to start the sixth, the Mountaineer bats then exploded for five runs. The surge brought the score to its final of 8-1.
• Kayla Berg got to with a leadoff error and then made it to third on a wild pitch. Haley Ebner quickly scored her with an RBI single for the unearned run and a 4-1 lead.
• Three batters later, Stateler delivered once again this time with an RBI single through the left side, scoring Ebner. Tyree then hit a sacrifice fly to plate Shelby Starr.
• Sloppy pitching ultimately allowed EOU to score its final run. Stateler got to second and third on wild pitches, before a third wild pitch allowed her to score.
• After scoring a run in the fourth, Smith and the defense did not allow the Warriors to tally a hit in the final three innings of work. The stout play ultimately advanced EOU to a second game.

Mountaineers Stat Leaders
• Madison Stateler hit 2-3 with two RBI and two runs scored. 
• Hannah Tyree had two RBI, drew a walk, and had one hit.
• Caitlin Crist went 2-2 at the plate with two runs scored and drew a walk. 
• Haley Ebner was 1-2 with a run scored and an RBI.
• Amanda Smith improved to 18-5 in the complete game and fanned nine batters.

For the Warriors
• Maddie Ogles and Kaycee Arase each had a hit.
• Madison Wyllie had the lone RBI of the game.
• Samantha Martinez scored the lone run in the loss.
• Holly Gonzales (9-14) pitched a complete game and struck out six in the loss.

Game 2 – No. 15 Eastern Oregon 3, No. 8 Southern Oregon 1
How it Happened
• Fresh off a win they expected, the Mountaineers played the role of spoiler in their next game. In a top-25 showdown, 15th-ranked EOU upset No. 8 Southern Oregon by two runs.
• In the circle, Amanda Smith was tabbed the starter once again and once again was superb. She held arguably the NAIA's most potent offense to just one run and three hits in a complete game.
• Despite two errors by EOU's defense, the team escaped jams and did not allow an earned run. Offensively, the Mounties outhit the Raider 5-3 and long ball heroics by Madison Stateler was the difference.
• All three runs for Eastern came in the bottom of the fifth when Stateler delivered the lone home run of the day by either squad. 
• A leadoff hit by Haley Ebner and a walk on Shelby Starr got two on. Enter Madison Stateler. The sophomore jacked a three-run shot over the left field fence that gave EOU the two-run edge.
• The lone run of the day for the Raiders came back in the third inning. A leadoff hit got a runner on before an EOU error ultimately scored the run to give SOU the 1-0 lead.
• The three-run home run by Stateler was key in not only putting Eastern in front by two, 3-1, but it gave the team momentum that they never relinquished. 
• All three SOU hits in the game came in the first three innings. The rest of the game belonged to the Mounties as they secured the big win to complete day one 2-0 and snapped the Raiders' 17-game win streak.

Mountaineers Stat Leaders
• Madison Stateler hit 1-3 with a home run and had three RBI with a run scored.
• Shelby Starr scored a run and drew two walks.
• Rhyanne Oates accounted for the third run scored as a pinch runner.
• Amanda Smith moved to 19-5 in another win and had three strikeouts. 

For the Raiders
• Deja Acosta hit 1-3 and scored the lone run. 
• Cayla Williams and Ashton Cathey both went 1-3.
• Cayla Williams (15-3) pitched four frames in the loss and had one strikeout.

By the Numbers
41 - The Mounties 41 wins this season is tied for the most in a single season in program history.
1 - Eastern needs to win just one more game to have the most in a single season.
3 - Madison Stateler totaled three hits in the day one sweep and hit her fourth home run.
4 - EOU enters day two of the CCC Tournament with a four-game winning streak.
2 - The Mounties surrendered just two combined runs on day one.
8 - With the win over No. 8 SOU on Friday, EOU now has eight wins over ranked opponents in 2022.

Up Next
• The CCC Tournament Semifinals. No. 15 EOU will face No. 4 and top-seed Oregon Tech on Saturday, May 7, with first pitch set for 2 p.m.
• Should the Mountaineers win the match-up against OIT, they will punch their ticket to the CCC Championship game on Sunday at 1:30 p.m. If EOU loses, the team will play on Sunday at 11 a.m. in an elimination game against an opponent that is to be determined.

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