by Ryan Oppenheimer

The 11-28 Beacons still have playoff hopes, and to keep those hopes alive, they will need to maintain momentum for an upcoming six-game homestand. They will take on Corban at Rich Schwab field twice today, at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m.

Right fielder Ericka Allen is coming off a three-hit performance that propelled Bushnell to an 8-7 road victory over Warner Pacific on Saturday. Her partner in left, Madison Steelman, leads the team in hits, average and OPS, and also contributed two hits and an RBI Saturday. The two should be expected to spearhead the offense again.

Sam Silver is the Beacons’ two-way workhorse, pitching for a team-leading 4.24 ERA and 52 strikeouts over 19 appearances while also batting .307. As the regular day-one starter, she is expected to take the mound for the first game of the doubleheader. As for the second game, head coach Jim Patrick could decide to go with either Liz Hillier or Leslie Reynaga. Reynaga has been the more effective pitcher as of late, as she went 5.1 innings without an earned run and picked up the win on Saturday.

The Corban Warriors of Salem, OR are 7-28, sit directly below Bushnell in the Cascade Conference standings at ninth place, and have not yet won a game on the road this season. They arrive in Eugene having lost their last 14 straight, albeit against very tough opponents such as the College of Idaho and Southern Oregon. Infielder Paia’ala Wilcox-Molina leads the charge for the Warriors’ offense, batting .323 with a .905 OPS. On the mound will likely be Vanesa Hulett-Quinones, who leads the team in both starts (16) and wins (4).

The Beacons won 3-of-5 meetings with Corban last year, and they will need to win games like this consistently to stay in the playoff picture. They should theoretically continue Corban’s losing streak and add cushion to their lead in the standings.

Prediction: Bushnell wins both games by at least 4 runs