The Pioneer baseball team fell 14-4 (box score) in game one of Saturday's doubleheader against the Pacific Boxers. The Pioneers scored in the bottom of the eighth to win game two 4-3 (box score) in a pair of games played down the road at Lake Oswego High School.

On a cold day in the Pacific Northwest, the Pioneer and Boxers moved their games to the turf surface at Lake Oswego High School, two miles from campus, to better ensure that the games would get played. With just one twenty-minute rain delay in game two and a few snow flurries along the way, the two teams got in the nine-inning games.

In game one, the Pioneers took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on an RBI single by Sam Holman (freshman, Eugene, Ore.). Pacific translated back-to-back singles from Nick McNeely and Kaeo Lau Hee to start the second inning into two runs to go up 2-1. The Pioneers used a pair of hits of their own, singles by Neal Finch (junior, Boulder, Colo.) and Ryan Kostecka (freshman, Napa, Calif). in the second to tie up the game 2-2. A three-run third and a four run fourth put the game securely in the Boxer's control. Two runs on big hits, a solo homerun by Zach Gantenbein in the fifth, and a triple by Kaeo Lau Hee in the sixth, gave Pacific an 11-3 lead. They held on for a 14-4 victory.

The Pioneers had 12 hits in the game, all singles. The Boxers had 16 with five extra-base hits. Pacific's Kaeo Lau Hee went 4-5 with four runs scored. Nick McNeeley was 3-4 with 3 RBI. Brandon Kon drove in six runs on three hits. Jordon Wlodarczyk (junior, Lake Oswego, Ore.), a graduate of Lake Oswego High, went 2-4 scoring two runs for the Pioneers.

Game two was the exact opposite of the offensive show of game one. Starting pitchers Alex St. Pierre (freshman, Laguna Hills, Calif.) and Blaine Knuth controlled the hitters. The Pioneers scored two early runs off Knuth. Jordan Shibata (senior, Pearl City, Hawaii) doubled to lead off the game, coming around to score on a single by TJ Witkowski (sophomore, Tooele, Utah). Tucker Laurence (freshman, San Martin, Calif.) singled to lead off the second, scoring an unearned run after advancing on an errant pickoff attempt and being driven in on a sac fly by Ryan Kostecka.

The Pioneers added a third run in the seventh when another leadoff hit, this time a double by Neal Finch, came around to score.

Staked to a 3-0 lead, St. Pierre had his longest outing of the season, working into the eighth inning. The Boxers took advantage of Pierre's long day in the inning, plating three runs. Brandon Kon doubled to start the inning. Andrew Curtin followed with a single. They both scored on a double by Jeff Johnson. Johnson scored the tying run on the fourth hit of the inning, a single by Zach Gantenbein.

The Pioneers went to the pen, bringing in David La Douceur (freshman, The Dalles, Ore.). La Douceur got the groundout to end the inning.

The Pioneers staved off extra innings in the eighth when they got the leadoff runner aboard after a Pacific error. Pacific then went to the pen, bringing in Nate McBride. TJ Witkowski doubled off McBride to score the go-ahead run, a run that was the responsibility of starting pitching Knuth.

LaDouceur came back out in the ninth, getting two outs on strong defensive plays in left field by Tucker Laurence before giving up a single to Brandon Kon. La Douceur induced a flyout to right to end the game and earn his first career victory.

St. Pierre, who got a no-decision, worked 7.2 innings, allowing nine hits, three earned runs, walking one and striking out two. La Douceur worked 1.1 innings, allowing just the one hit.

Offensively, TJ Witkowski went 3-4 with two runs driven in game two.

For the Boxers, Brandon Kon was a perfect 4-4 in the second game.

The Boxers are now 18-16 (15-11 NWC). The Pioneers earned their 10th Conference victory of the season, with an overall mark of 12-23.

The two teams wrap up the series tomorrow afternoon with a pair of seven-inning games to be played once again at Lake Oswego High School. First pitch is at 12 noon.