SPRINGFIELD, Ore. – JoJo Roman finished the day 5-for-5 and reached base in all 10 plate appearances, but it wasn't enough for Oregon Tech, as the Bushnell bullpen preserved late leads in 9-5 and 13-11 wins over the Hustlin' Owls at the Hamlin Sports Complex.
 
OIT (12-16, 5-11 CCC) had chances in the opener, but stranded at least one runner in all nine innings and left 15 runners in scoring position in the loss.
 
The Owls played from behind, trailing 2-0 in the fourth, before Cal Pickhardt got Tech on the board with a solo homer. The Beacons (14-14, 6-9) answered with three solo homers in the bottom of the inning to build a 5-1 lead, but 2-run homers by Aiden Corkery in the fifth and Logan Pontecorvo in the sixth, got the visitors within a run.
 
Unfortunately, three BU relievers kept Tech at bay over the final three innings.
 
Nate Stevens finished 3-for-5 with two doubles, a homer and four RBI for the Beacons, while Corkery, Logan Macy and Nick Gimino each had two hits for Tech. Roman was 3-for-3 and was hit by two pitches in the loss.
 
Game 2 was a slugfest, as the Owls jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the third inning. Run-scoring singles from Pontecorvo and Macy in the first and a 2-run single from Corkery in the third gave the visitors the cushion.
 
The Beacons answered behind Danny Womack – capping a 5-run third with a 2-run single and giving the host a 12-7 lead in the fourth with a grand slam homer.
 
OIT made it a one-run game in the fifth after a bases-clearing double from Michael O'Daniel, but BU reliever Jacob Courtney allowed just one hit and striking out 10 over the final four innings, to end the Owls chances.
 
Corkery had two hits in the loss for Tech, with Roman going 2-for-2 with two walks and a hit by pitch.
 
The series concludes Saturday with an 11 a.m. doubleheader.