COMING UP: at Bushnell (DH), Friday, 2 p.m.; at Bushnell (DH), Saturday, 11 a.m.
 
GAME DAY INFORMATION: Live Stats of all games will be available through OIT's SIDEARM Stats Portal, while all Cascade Conference games will be broadcast live on the Urban Edge Network.  Note – Bushnell home games are played at the Hamlin Sports Complex in Springfield.
 
OPPONENT PREVIEW – BUSHNELL: After a short stay at home, Tech will play games 23-to-26 on the road this season, traveling to Bushnell for a key 4-game series. The Beacons (12-14, 4-9 CCC) have played a recent gauntlet of a season – consecutive weeks against the top three teams (LC State, UBC, C of I) in the circuit. Bushnell is hitting .305 with a league-best 27 home runs, adding 57 doubles and 48 stolen bases, with the pitching staff posting a 5.98 ERA and averaging over eight strikeouts a game. The Beacons have played tight games, going 5-6 in contests decided by 1-or-2 runs. A potent lineup is led by sluggers Dylan Carson (.305 10 HR 32 RBI), Nate Stevens (.358 7 HR 25 RBI) and Albert Jennings (.387 4 HR 27 RBI), while starting pitchers Kai Keamo (1-3 4.41 ERA, 45 K) and Austin Wolfe (3-3 6.23 ERA, 29 K) anchor the rotation, along with relievers Griffin Sanchez (0-1 1.80 ERA) and Jahshua Yacapin (1-1 3.12 ERA, 2 saves). OIT holds an 18-10 series lead, winning 4-of-5 match-ups in 2025.
 
SHORTEST ROAD TRIP: The Owls return to the road this weekend with the drive to the Valley to meet Bushnell – their closest baseball opponent. The 3-hour drive (171 miles) is an hour shorter than any other trip this season – 4-hours (240 miles) to Corban, 4.5-hours (279 miles) to Warner Pacific, 7-hours (391 miles) to La Grande – while the remaining two trips featured air travel.
 
LC SWEEPS SERIES: After playing their first 22 games on the road, Tech returned to the Basin – only to meet then No. 12-ranked Lewis-Clark State. The 19-time NAIA champs had their bats working, averaging 11 runs and 13 hits per game, scoring in 18 of the first 27 innings of the series. LC did the bulk of their damage with two outs, recording 17 2-out hits, completing a series sweep of the Owls.
 
HOME STREAK SNAPPED: LC State snapped a string of 6-straight home series wins for the Owls, dating back to the 2024 season. The sweep marks just the second home sweep by an OIT opponent since the club moved to Bocchi Field in 2022 – with the same LC team sweeping Tech in 2022.
 
BATS HAD CHANCES: The Owls had chances in the LC series, averaging nine hits per game – but were unable to capitalize on their chances. Tech finished the series just 7-for-37 with runners in scoring position and scored a runner from third base with less than two outs just 4-of-11 times.
 
MACY HAS STRONG SERIES: Leading the charge offensively was Logan Macy, as the OIT shortstop finished 6-for-16 in the series. The sophomore scored four runs, added two doubles, two RBI and two stolen bases, while extending a string of games reaching base to 13. Macy leads the club with 10 stolen bases and 25 runs scored.
 
4-HIT DAY FROM SHARP: Andrew Sharp continued his big season at the plate, recording the Hustlin' Owls second 4-hit game of the year, while finishing the series 5-for-13 at the dish. The transfer, who ranks fifth in the CCC in batting average, joins Nick Gimino as the only Tech players with 4-hit games this season, while adding five walks during the series. Sharp heads into the weekend leading the Owls with 36 hits, nine doubles and 20 walks.
 
O'DANIEL REMAINS SOLID: For the third time this season, Michael O'Daniel hit safely in all four games of a weekend series, going 6-for-14 with a double and four RBI vs. LCSC. The Owls center fielder had a big Game 4, driving in Tech's first three runs of the contest.
 
FREE CHANCES: Pitchers struggled to command in the first three games of the weekend series, leading to the lopsided scores. LC capitalized on 16 walks, 13 hit by pitches and 10 OIT errors in their three victories.
 
ULLOA-FORD SHINES IN FIRST START: After a dominant month in the back end of the Tech bullpen, freshman right-hander Marcos Ulloa-Ford made his first collegiate start – and impressed. Facing the top hitting team in the CCC, Ulloa-Ford held LC in check – putting zeros on the board over his last five innings – becoming OIT's first pitcher to work eight innings in a game this season. He allowed four runs on eight hits, walking just one and striking out eight and left the game with the lead – taking over the team lead with 26 strikeouts this season.
 
LUNDQUIST FANS SIX: Lefty Aiden Lundquist worked in long relief vs. LC, entering the game in the top half of the first inning of Game 3. The junior battled three times through the tough lineup to throw a season-best six and a third innings, tying a season-high with six strikeouts. It is the fourth time in six appearances that Lundquist has thrown five-plus innings.
 
DEBUTS: Three OIT players made their 2026 season debuts against LC State – as Chase Southern earned a pinch-hit spot in Game 1, freshman Dylan Le got an at bat and played second base in Game 1, while freshman Ezra Oster made a pitching appearance in Game 2.
 
AROUND THE CONFERENCE: The first weekend of 4-game series did not disappoint, as Warner Pacific and Eastern Oregon split their series in Portland, while British Columbia won 3-of-4 at home vs. Corban and College of Idaho won 3-of-4 at home vs. Bushnell. Along with Tech traveling to Bushnell, C of I closes out a 12-game homestand this weekend against Warner Pacific, Corban heads to LC State, with UBC off to Eastern Oregon.
 
CCC TEAM LEADERS: Batting Average – Lewis-Clark State .318, Bushnell .307, College of Idaho .299, Oregon Tech .296, British Columbia .296; Runs Per Game – Lewis-Clark State 9.24, College of Idaho 8.95, British Columbia 8.42, Bushnell 7.50, Oregon Tech 7.04; Home Runs – Bushnell 27, British Columbia 26, Eastern Oregon 21, Lewis-Clark State 19, College of Idaho 17; Stolen Bases – College of Idaho 64, Corban 62, Oregon Tech 60, British Columbia 57, Bushnell 48; ERA – Lewis-Clark State 3.08, British Columbia 3.18, College of Idaho 4.78, Bushnell 5.94, Oregon Tech 6.07; Fielding Percentage –Eastern Oregon .971, British Columbia .969, Warner Pacific .962, College of Idaho .961, Bushnell .961.
 
CCC INDIVIDUAL LEADERS: Batting Average –Albert Jennings (BU) .398, David Krahn (UBC) .396, Peyton Rickard (CRB) .394, Braeden Scott (UBC) .391, Andrew Sharp (OIT) .379; Runs Scored – Chase Elliott (CRB) 27, Kyle Yip (UBC) 26, Danny Womack (BU) 26, Brandon Nguyen (LCSC) 26, Logan Macy (OIT) 25; Hits – Peyton Rickard (CRB) 41, David Krahn (UBC) 38, Albert Jennings (BU) 37, Andrew Sharp (OIT) 36, Nate Stevens (BU) 34, Logan Macy (OIT) 34; Home Runs – Dylan Carson (BU) 10, Nate Stevens (BU) 7, Jace Nagler (EOU) 6, Kyle Yip (UBC) 6, Mitchell Thoma-Britt (WPU) 5, Josh Cote (UBC) 5; RBI – Dylan Carson (BU) 32, Isaac Bateman (CRB) 27, Kyle Yip (UBC) 27, Albert Jennings (BU) 27, Nate Stevens (BU) 25; Stolen Bases – Chase Elliott (CRB) 14, Jace Nagler (EOU) 14, Danny Womack (BU) 12, Sean Shaffer (CRB) 11, Isaac Bateman (CRB) 11; ERA – James Brock (UBC) 2.53, Landon Webb (LCSC) 2.70, Jackson Cloud (LCSC) 2.77, Will Anderson (UBC) 2.81, Danny Tober (WPU) 3.00; Pitching Strikeouts – Kai Keamo (BU) 45, James Brock (UBC) 40, Will Anderson (UBC) 38, Easton Corey (EOU) 36, Evan Canfield (LCSC) 31.
 
RECORD BOOK: Currently, two players rank among the Top-25 in the OIT career record book. Kaden Melzer No. 8 in saves (4) and Landon Cheney sits at No. 13 in wins (11) and No. 14 in pitching appearances (46).
 
NEXT WEEK: The Hustlin' Owls will play 16 of their final 20 games of the season at home, beginning next weekend vs. Eastern Oregon – with doubleheaders set for Saturday (March 28) and Sunday (March 29).