February 23, 2025

By Ian French

UBC Communications

VANCOUVER, B.C — The UBC Thunderbirds completed the series sweep against the Eastern Oregon University Mountaineers with back-to-back wins at Tourmaline West Stadium on Sunday.

Game one saw a scoring standstill during the middle innings, until a five-run eighth garnered a sizable lead for UBC, as they eventually walked away with the 7-3 win. While, in the fourth game of the weekend, both sides went back and forth with their scoring before UBC ultimately earned the 11-9 win after seven innings, as the game was shortened due to rain.

"I thought that our guys competed the whole weekend," said UBC head coach Chris Pritchett when asked about the home-opening series sweep. "Anytime you win four games, it is gruelling to play two doubleheaders, and yesterday was about a 12-hour day. So, both teams kept competing and the results were good."

Game one

Eastern Oregon went right to work in the top of the first as, on the game's opening pitch, Parker Cumberland rocketed the ball over the right field fence for a solo shot. Will Anderson (Delta, B.C.), on the mound for UBC, managed to settle things down afterwards as he struck out three in the frame to limit the momentum. In the bottom half, UBC responded by earning the tying run via a bases-loaded walk.

The next few innings were efficient for both sides, leading to the score remaining at one apiece until the bottom of the sixth. With a runner on third and two outs, UBC's Mitchell Middlemiss (Chilliwack, B.C.) stepped into the box and delivered a line-drive single to left, handing the Thunderbirds a narrow 2-1 lead. The Mountaineers hit right back in the following half-inning. With two outs themselves, but with the bases loaded, Cumberland was due up once more and delivered a double through the right side, scoring two runners to re-take their one-run lead.

It was short lived, however, as, after already adding the tying run in the bottom half of the eighth, UBC's Stephen Waters (Toronto, Ont.) took to the box with two outs and the bases loaded as a pinch hitter. The moment was clearly not too big for the first-year utility man as he demolished the first pitch, sending it deep over the left-field wall for the game-changing grand slam. The Thunderbirds shut the door in the top of the ninth, walking away with the 7-3 victory.

"[Waters] has been impressive all fall and winter. We're going to keep trying to get him at bats because we know that he can really impact this team", said Pritchett. "He's been very patient waiting for opportunities, and he's ready to go when he gets them. That was a huge, huge swing for us."

Anderson ended the day throwing 6 2/3 innings, totalling 12 strikeouts with eight hits and zero walks. Owen McConnell (Vancouver, B.C.) was credited with the win, closing out the final 2 1/3 innings without allowing a run, conceding just three hits and recording a strikeout.

Game two

After a scoreless first inning, UBC blew the doors off in the second. Kicked off by a three-run, no-doubt, homer to left field coming off the bat of first-year infielder David Krahn (Langley, B.C.), the 'Birds managed to tack on another three before the frame was finished. Eastern Oregon entered the top of the third down 6-0, but needed little time to claw their way back into this one. Following a handful of wild pitches that put several Mountaineers on base, a single and a triple capped off four straight runs for Eastern Oregon, while a sac fly netted another before the end of the inning, nearly erasing the early advantage for the home side and making it 6-5.

Over the next three innings, both sides managed to tally three more runs each, pulling the score up to 9-8 in favour of UBC. Then, in the bottom of the fifth, a pair of singles, and a well-executed hit and run, led to two more runs for the T-Birds.

As the sixth began, so did the rain. The grey skies darkened as it began to pour down on Tourmaline West Stadium but both sides were determined to play on. A scoreless sixth led to the top of the seventh, with what seemed like the final hope for the Mountaineers as a shortened game became all but inevitable.

Eastern Oregon was not going down without a fight. They managed to load the bases with two outs when Mario Landeros stepped up to the plate. Landeros worked the count and earned a walk, scoring a run while keeping the bases juiced. Making his Thunderbirds debut, first-year pitcher Alex Lee (Burnaby, B.C.) proceeded to shut the door, punching out the following batter for the final out, earning him the save in his first ever appearance as he sealed the 11-9 win.

The T-Birds remain home next week, as they welcome the NAIA No.7-ranked Lewis-Clark State College Warriors for a four-game series at Tourmaline West Stadium. Game one is scheduled for Friday, February 28 at 2:00 p.m. PT, with doubleheader action set to follow on Saturday and the series finale on Sunday morning.