Oregon Institute of Technology Athletics

COMING UP: Season Complete
 
30-WIN SEASONS: With their win on April 16 at Corban, the Oregon Tech picked up their 30th win of the season, the second-time since 2002 that Tech has won 30 games in a year. In 2009, OIT logged 33 wins, en route to the NAIA West South Division title and a trip to the semifinals of the NAIA West Championships.
 
RECORD-SETTING HOME SEASON: OIT closed out their first season at Steen Sports Park with a 15-6 overall record – the most wins and best win percentage on their own diamond in program history. Tech also established a new mark by winning 10-straight home games from mid-March through mid-April.
 
POSTSEASON RECAP: The Owls did not make the postseason in 2022, finishing two games behind Corban in the final Cascade Conference standings. Lewis-Clark State defeated British Columbia to win the CCC Championship, with both teams advancing to the NAIA National Tournament Opening Round – where LCSC defeated UBC again in the bracket championship game. At the NAIA World Series, LCSC advanced to the championship game, losing an 11-5 decision to Southeastern (Fla.) in the title contest.
 
AWARDS: Kaleb Keelean was honored as a member of the All-Cascade Conference team, one of four outfielders selected by the seven league coaches. Keelean, along with third-baseman Mitchel Swanson, were each selected to the nine-player CCC Gold Glove Team.
 
RECORD BOOK REWRITTEN: The OIT single-season and career record book was altered throughout the 2022 season – as three single-season and three career marks were established. Dalton Daily set a new mark for season home runs with 16, while his 51 runs scored ranked third for a single year. Kaleb Keelean set a new mark for triples in a season (8), while recording the second-most hit-by-pitches (17) in a year. Also breaking a single-season mark was Dylan Grogan, who established a record with 78 strikeouts and ranked No. 4 in wins (7). Others recording a Top-5 single-season mark were Cody Dubray, who ranked No. 2 in ERA (2.67), lowest opponents' batting average (.210) and strikeouts (76), along with No. 4 in wins (7); Matthew Ortiz, who ranked No. 3 in hits (81); Brodie Maloney ranked No. 3 in saves (4); Brody Marino was No. 4 in fielding percentage (.997); Alex Bratton was No. 4 in ERA (2.79); with Michael Tarakhchyan No. 5 in sacrifice hits (7). In the career book – Daily set a new mark for slugging percentage (.601) and ranks No. 2 in home runs (30); Keelean set new marks for triples (10) and hit-by-pitches (39), along with No. 2 in on-base percentage (.469); with Alex Malcolm No. 3 in hit-by-pitches (29).
 
LOOKING AT 2022: It was an up-and-down 2022 season for the Owls in Jacob Garsez's second year as skipper. Tech picked up series wins against both Simpson and William Jessup to start the year, before going 1-3 in a February trip to Arizona. OIT swept 4-game sets against both St. Martin's and Eastern Oregon and split a 4-game series with British Columbia to close out non-league play – before the see-saw season took charge. The Owls dropped 4-straight games at College of Idaho, followed by eight wins in nine games – including their first-ever series win at Menlo. Unfortunately, OIT would win just one of their final 12 games – all against postseason teams – with nine of the losses coming by three runs or less (Tech finished the season 13-19 in games decided by 3-or-less runs, including eight 1-run setbacks). As a team, OIT set a school record with 19 doubles, with their 344 runs scored, the 41 home runs and 88 stolen bases all ranking among the Top-3 in program history. The squad set a new school mark with 15 saves and 412 strikeouts on the year, while posting the No. 2 ranked ERA (4.48) in program history.
 
THANK YOU SENIORS: A group of nine seniors saw their college careers end at the conclusion of the 2022 season – with Michael Tarakhchyan, Alex Malcolm, Spencer Dahlke and David Palmer spending their entire college experience at OIT, while Kaleb Keelean, Dalton Daily, Dylan Grogan, Jacob Miller and Mitchel Swanson joining the squad as transfers.
 
A LOOK AHEAD: The Owls return key experience as the squad turns the page towards the 2023 season – including four everyday starters in second baseman Matthew Ortiz (.358 2 HR 37 RBI, 16 SB), first baseman Tyler Horner (.316 6 HR 40 RBI, 17 2B), catcher Brodie Marino (.282 2 HR 36 RBI) and designated hitter Ian Peters (.336 4 HR 26 RBI, 10 2B0. OIT returns two of their four starting pitchers in Patrick Arman (4-4 3.94 ERA) and Cody Dubray (7-3 2.67 ERA), along with two of their top relievers in Alex Bratton (0-3 2.70 ERA, 3 saves) and Brodie Maloney (1-1 3.47 ERA, 4 saves).