via Oregon Tech Athletic Communications
KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – Oregon Tech used two completely different walk-off 15-run games to finish a 4-game sweep of Warner Pacific, as the Hustlin’ Owls won their eighth and ninth games in a row with the victories at Steen Sports Park.
Matthew Ortiz placed a perfect squeeze bunt in the bottom of the ninth inning of the opener, helping Tech (29-11, 20-9 CCC) escape with a 15-14 win, with Logan Macy driving home Ortiz from second in the bottom of the seventh inning of Game 2 – giving the Owls a 15-5 run-rule victory.
OIT improved to 11-1 at home this season, including 11-straight wins on their own diamond – recording 30 hits on the afternoon and capitalizing on 11 errors by the Knights (7-27, 6-23).
Game 1 was a slugfest, with the Owls breaking a 6-6 tie in the sixth inning with a 5-run frame. Patrick Barry blooped an RBI double and Tyler Horner added a run-scoring single in the rally.
WP answered in the seventh against the Owls bullpen – drawing four walks, a hit-by-pitch and rapping four hits – including a go-ahead 2-run single from Julius King, part of a 7-run inning, to take a 13-11 lead.
The Owls tied the game in the bottom of the inning on a Korrey Siracusa RBI single and made it 14-13 in the eighth on a sun-aided RBI double from Keanu Mizuta. However, the Knights responded in the ninth with a 2-out, 2-strike RBI double from Connor Hale to tie the game.
In the bottom of the inning, Barry doubled, moved to third on a fly ball and scored on a perfect push bunt by Ortiz.
Barry tied an OIT record with three doubles in the win, Horner had three hits and two RBI, Siracusa was 3-for-5, with Macy and Mizuta each recording two hits. Mason DeVerna, Collin Schiller and Mitchell Thoma-Britt all had three hits for WP, part of a 17-hit attack.
After spotting the Knights a 1-0 lead in Game 2 – Tech responded with the next 14 runs. A 2-out dropped pop fly plated two runs in the second, followed by a Julien Jones bloop double and an Ortiz RBI infield single to cap the 5-run inning.
Ortiz made it 7-1 in the fourth, tripling home a run, while scoring on an error on the relay throw from the outfield. The Owls batted around for six runs in the sixth inning, with Macy, Siracusa and Barry delivering run-scoring hits.
WP forced Tech to play the bottom of the seventh after scoring five runs in the top of the inning, but Ortiz led off with single, moved to second on a wild pitch and scored on a Macy single to left to cap the weekend sweep.
Carson Glavich struck out a season-high six batters while working into the seventh inning. Ortiz and Macy each had three hits in the victory.
The Owls continue their month-long homestand next Friday and Saturday, hosting Corban in a pair of doubleheaders.
