LA GRANDE, Ore. — Eastern Oregon Baseball continued the second half of their first conference series by taking Game 1 of Monday's doubleheader from The College of Idaho, 11-5, before falling 15-4 in Game 2. Only the first 3 games of the series count towards the conference standings.
Game 1
The Mountaineers bounced back from Saturday's setbacks with a statement performance in the opener.
Reed Stamps set the tone on the mound in the first inning, allowing just one baserunner while striking out two and inducing a pop up to keep the Yotes off the board. The offense followed with an explosive bottom half.
Mario Landeros worked a walk,
Jace Nagler was hit by a pitch, and
Greyson McDaniels drew another walk to load the bases with one out.
Lucas Smith delivered the big swing, launching a grand slam to left center to give EOU an early 4-0 advantage.
Aside from a solo home run in the third, Stamps and the Mountie defense limited the damage, stranding six Coyote baserunners through the first four innings. Meanwhile, Eastern added two more runs to stretch the lead to five.
The Yotes cut into the deficit with a solo homer in the fifth and plated two more runs in the sixth following a pitching change. Both teams added a run in the middle innings before Eastern Oregon broke it open in the seventh. Smith connected on his second home run of the game,
Andrew Demianew lifted a sacrifice fly, Landeros drove in a run with a single to right, and the final run came home on a bases-loaded walk.
Joey Weisenfels closed the door in the eighth, working around two baserunners to secure the 11-5 win.
Tyler Rebsom (2-0) earned the victory, while Jakob Cummins (1-1) took the loss for the Yotes.
Game 2
The Yotes responded quickly in the nightcap, capitalizing on a balk and a wild pitch to score in the opening inning before adding an RBI single to take a 2-0 lead.
Eastern answered in the bottom half, stringing together three hits and a walk to even the score. The Mountaineers briefly moved ahead in the second after
Lucas Perez was hit by a pitch and pinch runner Joey Weisenfels scored on Demianew's double to center field.
College of Idaho responded with a decisive five-run inning to reclaim control and never looked back. Eastern added one more run in the third, but baserunning miscues and steady Yote pitching prevented further momentum. The Yotes continued to build their lead late, hitting three home runs over the final three innings to seal the 15-4 win.
Grant Jakobson (1-1) earned the win after five innings of work, while
Jayden Butler (1-2) was charged with the loss.
Eastern Oregon returns to Optimist Field on Saturday, February 28, to host Oregon Tech, with first pitch scheduled for 12 p.m.
