MCMINNVILLE, Ore. – The Eastern Oregon University baseball team opened its three-game series against Linfield University on Friday afternoon with a tough 10-9 loss after holding a six-run lead midway through the contest.
The Mounties wasted no time getting on the board, taking a 1-0 lead in the first inning behind three consecutive singles and an RBI sacrifice fly from
Alex Olague. On the mound, Corey Easton, backed by solid defense, kept the Wildcats quiet through the first five frames. Linfield managed just four runners in five innings – reaching on an error in the third, a walk in the fourth, and a double and a walk in the fifth — but was unable to break through. On the flip side, Linfield also held Eastern to four scoreless innings with just Olague reaching on a single in the 4th and Zander reaching on a walk in the 5th.
After a stretch of scoreless innings on both sides, Eastern Oregon broke the game open in the sixth. Capitalizing on walks and defensive miscues, the Mountaineers pushed their advantage to 8-0.
Mario Landeros reached on a Wildcat error before coming around to score as
Lucas Smith delivered a ground ball for a fielder's choice.
Carson Gerding followed it up with a single through the right side to score McDaniel. A change in Linfield pitching didn't slow the Mounties, as they continued to push runs across.
Easton Espinoza loaded the bases after being hit by a pitch, while the next three Mounties walked into free bases and RBIs. After a second pitching change, Eastern continued to produce, with another Landeros single and an Olague walk extending the lead to eight.
Linfield responded immediately in the bottom of the inning, cutting their deficit in half. The Wildcats plated four runs on timely hits, including 2 RBIs from Jackson Bui – both of whom reached base on walks. After a change in pitching for the Mounties, Linfield pushed two more across on wild pitches and a single up the middle.
Eastern's offense cooled over the next two innings, managing only a walk from Landeros and a double from McDaniel but leaving both stranded. Linfield continued to chip away in the eighth, using a walk and a two-run home run from Kister to pull within two runs.
Holding a narrow 8-6 lead in the ninth, the Mounties added an insurance run. A double from Gerding and a single from
Tucker Zander pushed their ninth run across the plate, but three runners were left on base, leaving the door open for the Wildcats. Linfield capitalized in the bottom of the ninth, stringing together clutch hits while taking advantage of walks, errors, and wild pitches. With two outs, the Wildcats completed the comeback on a go-ahead wild pitch to secure the 10-9 victory.
Despite outhitting Linfield 11-8, Eastern left 12 runners on base and committed four errors.
Jayden Butler (1-1) was charged with the loss, while Wyatt Hurley (1-0) earned the win for the Wildcats.
Eastern Oregon moves to 2-3 on the season and will return to action tomorrow for game two of the series, with first pitch set for 12 p.m.
