BURNABY, B.C. – The UBC Thunderbirds opened Cascade Conference softball play with a 4-1 defeat at the hands of the Corban (Ore.) Warriors, the fifth-ranked team in the NAIA, Saturday night at Beedie Field in Burnaby, B.C.
 
"I thought we played very well on both sides of the ball," said UBC head coach Gord Collings. "Against a team like that, to be able to stay in the game until late, with an opportunity to win, is encouraging. Our hits were hard but right at them. Their hits found the holes."
 
UBC (1-6, 0-1 CCC) took a 1-0 lead in the first inning lead thanks to a lead-off triple by senior shortstop Sydney Brown, who came home when the next batter, senior left fielder Paige Harbord, singled up the middle.
 

The Thunderbirds shut out Corban (8-4, 1-0 CCC) until the top of the fifth inning. With runners on first and second, Sam Woodley doubled to center field to score Tabby Humphrey.
 
The Warriors took the lead for good in the sixth, when Sophia Barbosa hit a two-run home run over the center field fence to make it 3-1 in favour of the visitors. Corban added an insurance run in the top of the seventh on a Jessie Isham RBI single to center field.
 
Pitchers Emma Tuson of the Thunderbirds and Warrior Sabrina Boyd both threw complete games. Boyd improved to 4-1 after surrendering just a lone run on Saturday. Tuson fell to 0-2 despite a quality start in which she gave four earned runs.

Brown went 3-for-4 at the plate for UBC, while Harbord, Michaela Moore, and Shaelyn Ogilvie had the other hits for the home side.
 
Woodley and Mahina Chong each had a pair of hits for Corban.
 
The teams will play a doubleheader Sunday to cap off their weekend series in Burnaby. The first contest is slated to begin at 4:30 p.m., with the second game scheduled for 6:30 p.m.
 
"Defensively, we're okay, I think offensively, we've just got to keep hitting the ball and if we get some opportunities where we get the it in play, we've got to score," said Collings.
 
- with files from Kenneth Pittman