ATHERTON, Calif. –
Matthew Ortiz had a pair of 3-hit games, leading Oregon Tech to a doubleheader sweep of Menlo College at Cartan Field.
The Owls (25-14) held off a late Menlo rally in the opener, claiming a 10-inning, 8-7 win, before a great pitching performance from
Jacob Miller helped the visitors earn a 7-3 victory in the series finale. The two wins pushed OIT's season total to 25 – the most single-season wins since 2010.
Tech built a 5-0 lead in Game 1, with starter
Cody Dubray tossing five-plus innings of shutout ball, striking out four. The Owls struck first in the second on a 2-run homer from
Ka'ala Tam, doubling the lead in the fifth on an RBI double from
Ian Peters and a
Brodie Marino RBI single. A Tam RBI single in the seventh gave the visitors the 5-run lead.
Menlo (12-22-1) forced extra innings with a late inning rallies – as a Josh Selvaggio 2-run single in the eight cut the gap to 5-3. After OIT's
Dalton Daily hit his 13th home run in the ninth to extend the lead to 6-3, Selvaggio tripled home a pair in the bottom of the frame to tie the score with no outs.
Dylan Grogan entered for the Owls and got a strikeout, pop up and strikeout to end the threat.
In the tenth, Tech took the lead to good on a 2-run single from
Tyler Horner, but the Selvaggio responded with a bases loaded infield single to get Menlo within a run. Grogan ended the game with one pitch, catching a Dylan Park liner and turning into a double play.
Horner was 3-for-5 with two RBI, Tam was 2-for-5 with three RBI and
Kaleb Keelean going 2-for-5 in the win. Selvaggio was 5-for-6 in the loss for the Oaks.
"What a great effort and intent from our starting pitching today," said OIT head coach
Jacob Garsez. "We did a good job of responding to the ups and downs of the game. A lot of guys contributed successfully. Great to get a series win on the road."
Game 2 was paced by Miller, who tossed five shutout innings, limiting Menlo to just three hits and striking out four.
OIT scored single runs in each of the first three frames – getting a Marino sacrifice fly, a
Sean Tobin RBI single and a Horner RBI double. Ortiz had the big blow in a 3-run sixth, launching a 2-run homer, pushing the lead to 6-0.
Horner was 2-for-3 in the win for Tech – part of a 12-hit attack.
The Owls return home next weekend, hosting Bushnell University in a four-game weekend series at Steen Sports Park.
