KLAMATH FALLS, Ore. – Eastern Oregon and Oregon Tech closed out a spirited four-game series with a doubleheader split at Stilwell Stadium, as the Mounties outlasted Tech, 9-8 in eight innings in Game 1, while the Owls rode a gem from Carli Moore to claim Game 2, 5-1.
 
No. 13-ranked EOU (3-3, 2-1 CCC) squandered an 8-0 fifth inning lead, as the Lady Owls scored eight runs in the final three innings to force extras – but the visitors scratched across a run and stranded the tying run in the bottom of the frame to clinch the Cascade Conference series win.
 
Eastern dominated the opener early on – as a Madelyn Durham RBI double gave the Mounties a 2-0 first inning lead, with an Emily Barry RBI double in the third pushing the margin to 4-0. Barry singled home a run and Madison Olson doubled home a pair in the fifth – putting the Mounties in position for a run-rule victory.
 
OIT (9-3, 1-2) battled back – scoring two in the bottom of the fifth to extend the contest, with Nita Cook doubling home a run in the sixth to pull the Owls within 8-4. In the seventh, Sawyer Stenson lined an opposite-field RBI double, Zoe Allen walked with the bases loaded and Jayce Seavert lined a 2-out, 2-run single to tie the game. OIT had a chance to win, but a fly out ended the threat.
 
In the eighth, Eastern loaded the bases with no outs, but Moore, in her fourth inning of relief got a strikeout and fielders' choice to keep the Mountaineers at bay – but a walk to Barry forced in the go ahead run. In the bottom of the inning, OIT got the tying run to third with one out – but could not score the runner.
 
Cook was 3-for-5 and Seavert was 3-for-4 for Tech, with Stenson and Marla Goodspeed adding two hits. Moore allowed just one earned run on four hits, striking out five.
 
Barry was 2-for-4 with four RBI for EOU, with Olson adding two hits.
 
Game 2 started similarly, as Eastern loaded the bases with one out, with a Barry RBI single giving the Mounties a 1-0 lead. Enter Moore, who retired 20 of the final 23 batters – including back-to-back strikeouts to end the first inning threat – with the right-hander not allowing a runner to reach scoring position the rest of the way.
 
Tech got even in the second on a Cook bases loaded walk and grabbed the lead two innings later on a 2-out 2-run single by Cook. The Owls added two insurance runs in the fifth, including Addison Kachnik's first home run of the year.
 
Moore finished the game allowing just one hit and struck out six, with Cook and Kachnik each recording 2-hit games.
 
Tech returns to action next weekend, traveling to Montana for a 4-game series at the University of Providence.