CALDWELL, Idaho – The UBC Thunderbirds earned a big win Sunday in their chase for the final Cascade Collegiate Conference softball playoff berth, splitting a neutral-site doubleheader against the No. 13-ranked Corban (Ore.) Warriors in Caldwell, Idaho.

UBC (11-20, 8-13 CCC) won the opener 4-3 in 11 innings thanks in part to another school-record performance by starting pitcher Emma Tuson. The Warriors (27-10, 16-5 CCC) bounced back for a 7-0 victory in Game 2. The two games were the second and third contests of a series that began back in early March but was rescheduled due to snow in the Lower Mainland.
 

GAME 1 – UBC 4, Corban 3 (11 innings)

Corban opened the scoring with three runs in the top of fourth inning, but the Thunderbirds immediately replied in the bottom half of the inning with a couple runs of their own.
 
Sydney Brown drew a walk to lead off, and advanced to second on a fielder's choice play that also allowed batter Paige Harbord to reach base. A single through the right side by Claire Eccles loaded the bases for Michaela Moore, who delivered with a single to center field to score Brown and Harbord.
 
The T-Birds tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the sixth when Frances Ramsay drove a single down the left field line to bring Eccles home.

The teams' offences were held at bay until the 11th inning. Harbord led off with a single to third base. On the next play, Eccles reached on a fielder's choice, and Harbord eventually got to third thanks to a throwing error by Corban's shortstop. Sierra Sherritt then drove in the game-winning run on a sacrifice fly to center field.
 

Tuson (6-6), who threw the 161 pitches in the game, was once again brilliant when the stakes were at their highest, keeping Corban off the scoreboard after the fourth inning to record her fourth consecutive win. It was the junior's second extra-inning, complete-game victory in three starts. Tuson broke her own school record for most innings pitched in a single game by throwing for 11, one more than the previous benchmark.

Moore had two hits and drove in two runs to lead UBC offensively. Eccles also had a pair of hits, while Harbord and Ramsay got the other hits for the T-Birds.
 

GAME 2 – Corban 7, UBC 0

The second game saw Corban jump in front and score a run in the first and second innings on RBI singles from Mahina Chong and Tatum Prechtel. From that point on, the Warriors poured in five more runs en route to riding Ally Crakes in the circle to a shutout victory.

Crakes was outstanding, as the rookie went all seven innings while allowing just five hits and zero runs for her second complete-game shutout of her young career.

Harbord had two hits for UBC, which also got hits from Brown, Sherritt, and Natasha Aisenstat.
 

Thankful for every opportunity to play the game I love ????#AOG #humboldtstrong @UBCSoftball pic.twitter.com/t1YYPXxnS1

— Emily Chorpita (@emchorps) April 13, 2018

The Thunderbirds are tied with the College of Idaho for the sixth and final CCC playoff spot with six conference contests left for both squads.
 
UBC will host the Northwest (Wash.) Eagles in doubleheaders Friday (1:30 p.m.) and Saturday (11 a.m.) at Softball City in Surrey. Corban will host Eastern Oregon in a pair of twinbills Friday and Saturday in Salem, Ore.