McMINNVILLE, Ore. – The Linfield pitchers limited Corban to four hits and
Branden Pasion and
Cameron Skinner collected two hits apiece to lead the Wildcats to a 4-1 non-conference win over the Warriors Wednesday at Roy Helser Field.
Both players went 2 for 3 with a walk and a run scored to help the Wildcats pick up their first win since their series finale at George Fox on Feb. 19. Pasion and Skinner are both riding seven-game hit streaks. Pasion leads Linfield with a .388 batting average and 13 runs on the season while Skinner is batting .347 with a .429 on-base percentage in an improved year as the team's designated hitter.
Danny Kahn drove in
Bodey Smith on a first-inning sacrifice fly in his first appearance of the season since returning from injury. A utility man, Kahn will likely take over as the starting second baseman.
After four scoreless innings, the 'Cats jumped out to a 4-0 lead in the sixth. The Warriors walked two batters and allowed a single by
Nick Holm to load the bases. A fielding error by the Corban third baseman allowed Pasion to score from third for the second run of the afternoon. Linfield played small ball to add insurance, plating two more runners on an RBI groundout by
Garrett Moen and a sac fly by
Braden Woods in his first career at-bat at the varsity level.
Corban avoided a shutout in the seventh inning when Elijah Maris singled to right field to send Brad Pellkofer across the plate. Pellkofer struck out three times in the game.
The Linfield pitchers were firing on all cylinders in a game that lasted just over two hours.
Spencer Burgess earned his first win on the mound in his first start of the season. The sophomore righty struck out two batters in two innings of work.
Brian Mannion and
Wyatt Hurley also tossed a pair of scoreless innings in relief while
Jackson Koons,
Aidan McCann and
Steve Kovac cleaned up the rest of the game. Kovac earned the first save of his collegiate career. It was also the first save for Linfield in 2023.
NEXT
The 'Cats (5-8, 2-4 NWC) return to Northwest Conference play this weekend, hosting Whitworth with a chance to make up ground in the standings.
