Oregon Institute of Technology Athletics

COMING UP: vs. No. 25 Eastern Oregon (DH), Friday, 2 p.m.; vs. No. 25 Eastern Oregon (DH), Saturday, 11 a.m.

COMPLETE WEEKLY MEDIA NOTEBOOK
 
WATCH LIVE / LIVE STATS: The 4-game series with Eastern Oregon will be carried on the Owls Sports Network with Mike Garrard on the call, with Live Stats available through the OIT SIDEARM Sports Portal.
 
WIN STREAK REACHES 18: With a perfect 6-0 week, OIT extended a win streak to a season-high 18 games – the fourth-longest win streak in program history. It is the third-straight year the Lady Owls have posted an 18-game win streak – as the 2021 and 2022 squads each won 20-in-a-row, while the 2002 recorded a 19-game win streak.
 
30-WIN SEASONS: Saturday's second win at Bushnell secured the Lady Owls their 30th win of 2023 – the 23rd 30-win season in program history. It marks the 12th-straight 30-win season – not including the 2020 COVID shortened campaign – with OIT recording 10 season with 40-or-more wins and a record 50-win season in 2022.
 
HOME SWEET HOME: Since the opening of John & Lois Stilwell Stadium in March of 2019, OIT has a 66-11 all-time record in the facility – including a perfect 13-0 record at home this season. Last year, the Lady Owls were near unbeatable, going 23-2 on their own diamond, the most home wins in a single-season in program history. Tech has posted a string of nine-consecutive Cascade Conference series wins at home dating back to March of 2021.
 
PLAYOFF SPOT CLINCHED: OIT became the first Cascade Conference team to secure a spot in the 6-team CCC Championships – the 12th-straight playoff appearance (not including 2020) and the 27th playoff appearance in 30 years. The CCC regular-season champion will host the CCC Championships, May 5-7.
 
SWEEPING SOUTHERN: A dominant Wednesday afternoon helped the Lady Owls complete their first doubleheader sweep of Southern Oregon since 2015 – cruising to 7-0 and 10-2 victories. Facing the No. 1 hitting team in the CCC, OIT held SOU to one earned run on 10 hits, while Tech pounded out a combined 17 runs – including a 14-hit attack in Game 2, the most hits surrendered this season by the Raiders.
 
TOP-5 WINS: The two wins over No. 5-ranked SOU marked the 13th and 14th victories by OIT against a Top-5 opponent since 2002. Of the wins – five victories were against the No. 1-ranked team in the NAIA (two wins over Cal Baptist in 2011, a win over Georgia Gwinnett in 2018 and two wins over SOU in 2021).
 
PITCHING THE KEY: OIT pitching staff has been dominant over the past month – posting 21-straight games allowing three earned runs or less. The Owls have surrendered five hits or fewer in 15-straight games, while posting nearly a 4-to-1 strikeout (132) to walk (36) ratio. During the 21-game stretch, Tech has posted seven shutouts and three games with just one run allowed.
 
DYNAMIC DUO: The tandem of Mckenzie Staub and Kacie Schmidt have been a great 1-2 punch in the circle for the Lady Owls, ranking among the Top-5 in Cascade Conference wins, ERA and strikeouts. Staub pitched 20 innings last week, allowing just three earned runs on nine hits, striking out 25 – including a career-high 11 strikeouts in the series finale at Bushnell – while adding a walk-off home run in the back half of the doubleheader with SOU. In addition, Staub became the seventh OIT pitcher to record 300 career strikeouts. Schmidt extended her personal win streak to 14 with three wins, allowing three earned runs in 17 innings of work, logging 21 strikeouts – including a 6-hit shutout against SOU and a 2-hit shutout at BU.
 
A STEALING FRENZY: Tech continues to take extra bases when they can – stealing 11 bases in the 4-game series at Bushnell. For the season, the Lady Owls have swiped 78 bases on the year – No. 2 in the CCC – just 10 stolen bases off the OIT single-season school record. Five players have 9-or-more stolen bases – as Zoe Allen and Kaila Mick each have 14 stolen bases, Nita Cook has 11, with Jayce Seavert recording 10 steals and Lexi Klum adding nine.
 
SETTING THE TABLE: Leadoff hitter Zoe Allen continued her breakout season, reaching base in 14-of-23 plate appearances last week – including a team-best 11 hits. The sophomore scored seven runs and added three stolen bases, raising her team-high batting average to .454 and her team-high on-base percentage to .547. Allen has hit safely in a career-best 11-straight games.
 
BUCKHOLZ CONTINUES TO RAKE: An epic senior season for Maggie Buckholz continues, as the Owls right fielder had another string of outstanding games last week. Buckholz finished 9-for-19 at the plate, including three doubles, three triples and seven RBI – becoming the seventh OIT player to record two triples in a game during the Bushnell series. She has reached base in 20-straight games, with her team-high 46 RBI ranking No. 2 in the CCC.
 
MICK CIRCLES THE BASES: Shortstop Kaila Mick had another outstanding week and now leads the CCC in hits (49) and ranks No. 2 in runs scored (41). The junior was 8-for-18 on the week, scoring nine runs and adding five RBI – moving within 42 runs scored of the top spot on the OIT career record list.
 
KEY AT BATS: Tech got key production from Jayce Seavert and Lexi Klum in the 6-game week, with both players coming through in key moments. Seavert was 6-for-16, however, led the team with 12 RBI – including six RBI in the SOU doubleheader – pushing her season total to 34. Klum was 7-for-14 with three RBI, recording two doubles and two triples – moving within one triple of the single-season record of eight, set by Meghan Webber in 2002.
 
LONGTIME RIVAL HEADS TO THE BASIN: This week, No. 25-ranked Eastern Oregon makes the journey to the Basin, trying to keep pace in the CCC playoff chase. EOU was the lone team last season to win a series from OIT, sweeping the three counting games in La Grande – but the Lady Owls earned redemption in the conference semifinals, winning an extra-inning, 6-5, decision. The two teams have met 137 times since 1995, with OIT holding a 104-33 series edge, including a 50-6 record in Klamath Falls.
 
OPPONENT PREVIEW – EASTERN OREGON: Coming off a national tournament appearance in 2022, the Mountaineers (20-10, 11-6 CCC) have added one of the more electric arms in all of NAIA softball – as lefty Kaylie Hoskins (11-3 0.93 ERA) ranks second nationally in strikeouts (170 in 98 innings of work), while holding opponents to a .122 batting average. EOU is hitting at a .292 clip and averaging over five runs per game – paced by a trio of returners in shortstop Maddy Stateler (.407 1 HR 14 RBI), catcher Hannah Tyree (.349 6 HR 27 RBI) and second baseman Caitlin Crist (.273 2 HR 14 RBI, 13 SB).
 
AROUND THE CONFERENCE: OIT enters the week with a 2-game lead on College of Idaho and a 4-game lead on Southern Oregon in the league standings with four weeks remaining on the schedule. Along with the Lady Owls big home series vs. Eastern, C of I travels to SOU for a Top-25 match-up, Corban heads to UBC, Northwest hosts Bushnell, with Warner Pacific off to Providence.
 
AMONG THE BEST: In his 19th season at the helm, head coach Greg Stewart ranks No. 16 among active NAIA coaches with 675 career wins and is one of 18 active NAIA coaches with 600-or-more career victories. Stewart, the 8-time CCC Coach of the Year, ranks No. 18 on the all-time NAIA wins list.
 
RECORD BOOK: Nine members of the Lady Owls currently rank among the Top-25 in the OIT career record book (which does not include games from the 2020 COVID season), led by Mckenzie Staub, who is No. 6 in wins (51), No. 7 in pitching starts (64) and in pitching strikeouts (305), No. 8 in innings pitched (358.1), No. 10 in shutouts (8), No. 11 in complete games (29) and pitching appearances (77), ranking No. 22 in hit-by-pitches as a batter (9). Kaila Mick ranks No. 2 in triples (12), No. 3 in stolen bases (51), No. 4 in hit-by-pitches (26), No. 8 in runs scored (160), No. 12 in defensive assists (249), No. 13 in RBI (120) and in doubles (40), No. 16 in hits (204), No. 20 in sacrifice hits (10) and No. 25 in at bats (523); Maggie Buckholz ranks No. 5 in sacrifice flies (9) and in walks (66), No. 11 in triples (7), No. 13 in RBI (120) and No. 16 in both sacrifice hits (11) and home runs (20); Jayce Seavert ranks No. 3 in hit-by-pitches (36) and No. 5 in sacrifice flies (9); Jensen Becker is No. 10 in sacrifice hits (13) and No. 17 in triples (6); Lexi Klum is No. 9 in triples (8); Kacie Schmidt is No. 17 in pitching strikeouts (154) and in shutouts (4), No. 19 in wins (17), No. 22 in pitching appearances (43), No. 23 in pitching starts (19), No. 24 in innings pitched (136.0) and No. 25 in complete games (9), with Zoe Allen No. 16 in stolen bases (25) and Maddie Deverna sits just outside the Top-25 in stolen bases (18).
 
LOOKING AHEAD: The Lady Owls make their longest conference trip of the season next weekend, traveling to Great Falls for a 4-game series at the University of Providence.