VANCOUVER, B.C. – One errant hanging breaking ball proved to be the difference as the Bushnell baseball team had their season come to an end at the hands of Oregon Tech, 6-5 in a CCC Tournament elimination game.
 
The Beacons battled throughout the morning as they ran up against the stellar pitching of OIT's Bronson Chapple (4-1) who struck out ten batters and threw 135 pitches as he worked his way into the ninth inning.
 
Bushnell took an early lead on an Albert Jennings sacrifice fly in the top of the first inning, only to have the Owls answer on an RBI fielders choice in the second.
 
Kai Keamo (2-2) got the call on the bump for the Beacons and things started off well as he matched Chapple pitch-for-pitch over the first four innings, striking out seven batters. Trouble came in the fifth as the Owls blew the game open with five runs, capped off by a grand slam off the bat of Logan Macy, the first homer of his career, as they took a 6-1 lead.
 
Freshman Tyler Biddinger came in to relief Keamo and closed out the final three innings, keeping Bushnell in the game as he allowed just one hit.
 
The Beacons slowly carved away at the deficit, beginning in the sixth inning as Chapple made his first mistake, giving up a two-run homer to Will Hudler. Bushnell scored two more runs in the ninth, on a pinch-hit RBI single by Kolby Amaral, and one final RBI off the bat of Jordan Wilson on a sacrifice fly.
 
The Beacons (32-20) finish out an historic fourth season of the program in which they posted a new record for wins and were 12-games over .500. The Beacons will say goodbye to 20 seniors, including a host of Beacon "founding fathers" who have been around since the program launch in 2022.
 
"This team raised the standard for Bushnell baseball," said head coach Jamie Womack. "Things did not end the way we envisioned or hoped, but we fought until the last moment and I am proud of them. Bushnell baseball will be impacted by these exiting seniors forever. They build something truly special among themselves and I can't thank them enough. Our lives as coaches have been changed by these guys and we are truly blessed they chose to be Beacons."