ASHLAND, Ore. – In a fitting end to what has been a competitive three-horse race all season long in the Cascade Conference, No. 15 College of Idaho, No. 17 Oregon Tech and No. 1 Southern Oregon all battled it out for the tournament title on Sunday at University Field.
The Yotes (38-16, 22-5 CCC) advanced to the championship game against the Owls (42-8, 21-6 CCC) by knocking off No. 1 seed SOU (46-5, 26-1 CCC) 6-2 in an elimination game to start the day. OIT went on to win the title tilt with a 1-0 win in eight innings over C of I.
The win against SOU is the first in program history for the Yotes over the No. 1 ranked team in the nation.
Against the Raiders, C of I starter
Katelyn Wilfert (16-4) retired the first six batters that she faced before yielding a solo run in the third when Allie Stines slashed a base hit to left to make it 1-0.
In the bottom of the third, the Yotes generated an offensive attack featuring three runs on three hits that forced SOU starter Gabby Sandoval (26-3) from the game.
Catcher
Sydney Zachry started the third inning offense with a leadoff walk, followed by an
Aleah Mendiola single that was followed by an error by the second baseman that allowed
Haley Loffer to reach. With the bases full and nobody out,
Kylie Smith contributed a two-run single to give C of I the lead.
Kaily Christensen doubled to left later in the frame to extend the edge for the Yotes to 3-1.
Tayler Walker plated Lauren Quirke for the Raiders in the fourth to inch the hosts closer at 3-2. A
Micha Fortune diving catch in left robbed Katrina Winterburn of a hit to end the inning.
More great defense followed for the Yotes in the fifth when Smith ended the inning by turning a double play from her second base position, tagging the lead runner who was looking to advance to second and firing to first to get Stines.
Christensen provided two insurance runs for C of I with a two-run single up the middle in the bottom of the fifth.
Up 5-2, the Yotes once again relied on the gloves in the sixth when Loffer turned two on a grounder up the middle off the bat of Quirke.
A Loffer double and a throwing error in the bottom half of the sixth put C of I out on top 6-2.
Hannah McNerney would do the rest to earn the save, working a 1-2-3 seventh.
Wilfert picked up the win after a solid start which saw her go five innings, scattering six hits and two runs. McNerney did not allow a hit in two innings.
Christensen went 2-for-3 with three RBI in the win.
Trystin Crofts was 2-for-4 for the game.
Needing two wins to take the tournament crown against OIT, C of I would get a phenomenal start from McNerney (12-8), who took a one-hitter into the eighth. The right-hander from Hood River, Ore. did not allow an earned run on the day, striking out four.
In the first inning, McNerney escaped a first and second jam with one out by striking out Krista Ward and forcing Kennedy Jantzi to ground out to short.
McNerney would retire the next 14 hitters in order for the Owls before another threat in the seventh following a leadoff walk issued to Ward. Jantzi then reached on a sacrifice bunt that turned into a fielder's choice when Crofts went for the tag of pinch runner Maddie Deverna at third. With runners on first and second and nobody out, McNerney worked her way out of the situation with a pair of infield flyouts and an incredible catch by
Hattie Hruza in center on a ball hit off the bat of Olivia Lethlean.
An exceptional start by OIT starter Sarah Abramson (23-5) kept the Owls step-for-step with the Yotes all game. The right-hander pitched an eight-inning complete game shutout, allowing six hits and striking out seven. Her most important effort came in the top of the eight when C of I put runners on first and second with one out but was kept off the board.
The Owls brought home the winning run in the bottom of the eighth when Jensen Becker scored from third after she rounded the bag wide on a Kaila Mick groundout, prompting a throw to the base that was high and went down the line. Becker would race home for the lone run of the contest for either side.
Crofts had three hits for the Yotes in the second game of the day and Mendiola chipped in a pair of her own.
By winning the conference tournament, OIT secured an automatic berth in the NAIA National Championship Opening Round set to begin on May 17. The Yotes will away the selection show slated for Tuesday, May 11 at 3 p.m. MT on the PlayNAIA Facebook page to learn their fate.
