KLAMATH FALLS, ORE. - First-year pitcher Ryan Heppner was flat out dominant Sunday afternoon striking out 12 batters through eight innings as the UBC Thunderbirds doubled up the Lewis-Clark State Warriors 4-2 to advance to Tuesday's championship game at the Cascade Conference Tournament.
 
Before Heppner was able to set the tone from the hill on the afternoon it was the T-Birds bats that carved out the early lead finding success against Warriors starter Dallas McGill who lasted just two and one third innings, giving up three runs on four hits.
 

British Columbia advances to the Championship game of the @CCCSports Baseball Tournament with a 4-2 win over Lewis-Clark State!

Ryan Heppner W 8IP, 2ER, 0BB, 12K
Brendan Logan SV IP, 0BB, 2K@BrandonHupe 2-3, 2B, RBI@marsh_aaron solo HR (10) pic.twitter.com/vPIxPhvg66

— PNW College Baseball Report (@PNW_CBR) May 8, 2023

UBC catcher and leadoff hitter Russell Young got it all started in the top of the first inning with a single to right center, Young would be replaced by pinch runner Luciano Letteri who eventually came around to score after a Brandon Hupe single through the left side to make it 1-0.
 
Meanwhile Heppner was dialed in early as well, frustrating LC State batters and showing the opponent what the main theme of the afternoon would be as he registered four of his 12 strike outs through the top of the second inning.


 
The 'Birds offence would strike again in the top of the 3^rd for some much-needed breathing room as infielder Aaron Marsh cranked a home run over the center field wall for a 2-0 advantage. UBC first baseman Trent Lenihan followed with a sacrifice fly scoring Mike Fitzsimmons to make it a 3-0 lead, chasing Warriors starter, McGill from the game, replaced by Greg Blackman.
 
The T-Birds rounded out their scoring in the top of the fifth inning with Hupe reaching base on a throwing error from LC State's third baseman which allowed Letteri to touch home plate and go ahead 4-1.
 
Heppner's outstanding outing finished with eight innings pitched, 12 strike outs while giving up two runs on five hits to improve his record to (7-2) on the season. Brendan Logan came in for mop up duty in the final inning, allowing one hit while striking out two more to earn his second save of the season.

"It's Ryan's best effort of the year and on the biggest stage we've seen so far," said UBC head coach Chris Pritchett, referring to how effective his young hurler was. "He had masterful command and accuracy of his fastball, it had extra life, it really was jumping and he was throwing his breaking ball for strikes as well. He showed incredible poise for a freshman and the team fed of that."
 
The T-Birds needed to win both of their games on Sunday to advance to Tuesday's championship tilt and the blue and gold relied on another Heppner pitching sibling to lead the way in a tidy 5-1 victory over the College of Idaho in the CCC tournament early morning opener that saw first pitch at 9:00 a.m. Sean Heppner, the freshly minted CCC Pitcher of the Year award winner had a solid outing in securing the win (7-4) going six innings, allowing just four hits and one run while striking out five before Daniel Sereda came in to handle the final three innings and earn the save, allowing one hit and also striking out five opponents.
 

Brandon Hupe @BrandonHupe 3-run HR (8) in the 7th extends @ubc_baseball's lead to 5-1

@MikeSaffordJr@CCCSports Baseball Tournament pic.twitter.com/j80HYFLIEi

— PNW College Baseball Report (@PNW_CBR) May 7, 2023

On offence it was Brandon Hupe stirring the drink with a three run Home Run to left center field in the bottom of the seventh inning to help seal the deal while Trent Lenihan added a solo shot in the bottom of the fourth stanza.

"We've been dealing with some weather challenges and delayed games which is never easy in these settings where your unsure of playing status which messes with many areas of preparation," added Pritchett. "Credit to all the guys for staying dialed in, both Heppner's (Ryan & Sean) set the tone by throwing strikes, keeping us sharp and the defence on their toes, on the other side I was pleased with our timely hitting."

The championship game is set for 5:30 p.m. (PT) on Tuesday evening and UBC will meet the winner of Monday's game five featuring Lewis-Clark State vs the winner of Sunday night's battle between College of Idaho and Oregon Tech.