VANCOUVER – The University of British Columbia Thunderbirds (34-13, 28-7) kicked off senior weekend by splitting a Saturday doubleheader against the Bushnell Beacons (25-23, 17-18) at Tourmaline West Stadium, earning a 10-0 victory in game one, followed with a 3-1 loss in game two – snapping their winning streak at nine.

The T-Birds were led by starting pitcher Will Anderson, who conceded just two hits over six innings of work while striking out 11 – matching his season high – to earn the win in game one.

The Beacons secured the victory in game two through pinpoint pitching from starter DJ Kauahi, who conceded just one run while tossing all nine innings.

"[Anderson] was trying to overthrow the ball a little bit and get in some hitters' counts," said UBC head coach, Chris Pritchett. "Then once he settled in, guys like that, if they settle in, it gets tough for the hitters. He started to have all his pitches working, and it was fun to watch."



Game 1

Pitching set the tone early in this one, with scoring at a premium in the first several innings. Beacons starter, Kai Keamo, continuously tied up hitters to induce pop-ups or groundouts, while UBC's Anderson pounded the strike zone to rack up eight punch-outs through the first four innings.

With the game still scoreless in the bottom half of the fourth, UBC looked to make some noise. After a pair of walks, an error, and a hit-by-pitch loaded the bases with only one out, Braedon Scott and Matt Vrlak connected on back-to-back singles to drive in two runs. A wild pitch, another single, and a sacrifice fly off the bat of Kyle Yip capped a scoring explosion for UBC, handing the home side a 6-0 lead.

Over the next two innings, UBC tacked on three more runs, highlighted by a pair of doubles in the sixth from Yip and Josh Cote to inflate their lead to 9-0.

In the bottom of the seventh, UBC needed just one more run to walk things off due to the mercy rule. With runners on first and second, Oliver Clements stepped into the box and looked to deal damage. After blasting two foul balls that had home run distance to either side of the field, he connected on the next pitch and sent it deep to the gap in left centre, scoring Kansai Sugimoto to establish a 10-0 lead, sealing the win for the T-Birds.  

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Game 2

The bats stayed hot for UBC to start game two. After a walk and a subsequent double from Yip that put two runners in scoring position in the bottom of the first, Cote launched a moonshot to centre field to hand the home side an early 1-0 lead on a sacrifice fly.

The Beacons posed threats on the base paths early, but with one out and a runner on second in the top of the third, Albert Jennings blasted one that split the gap in left to score his squad's first run of the day. Nate Stevens and Dylan Carson wasted no time and followed with a pair of singles shortly after to hand Bushnell a 2-1 lead.

Through solid pitching and sound defence in the field, the Beacons' narrow advantage held all the way until the top of the seventh, where Nigel Fahland stepped up to the plate to lead off the frame. On the seventh pitch of the at-bat, the Beacons' short stop drilled a double down the left field line. Shortly after, Jennings swatted an RBI single through the left side for his third hit of the game and a 3-1 lead.



Throughout the final three innings, the 'Birds consistently made contact but couldn't seem to string hits together to generate offence, ending the game with a 3-1 loss.

"At this point in the year, there's not a lot of coaching advantage, and they know what's at stake," reflected Pritchett. "We're hoping that all the work we put in starts to show up in all the different areas at this point of the season. You can't be pitching well but not hitting; it's got to be everything."

Both sides will return to the field Sunday for more double header action. First place in the Cascade Collegiate Conference remains up for grabs, but it requires UBC to win both against Bushnell while also needing Warner Pacific to win their series finale at Lewis-Clark State.

First pitch for senior day at Tourmaline West Stadium is scheduled for 11 a.m. Admission is free and both games will be streamed live on the Urban Edge Network.