NEWBERG, Ore. – Led by a fine starting effort by southpaw Connor Harris, four George Fox University pitchers combined to hand Corban University its first loss of the season as the Bruins blanked the visiting Warriors 8-0 on the first day of the Cascade/Northwest Conference Baseball Challenge Thursday afternoon here at Morse Field.

Harris (2-0) worked five solid innings, scattering six hits with two walks and two strikeouts.  He allowed a double to Andy Hill and infield single to Gregg Romero in the third inning to put runners at the corners, but got Derek Legg to hit into a force out to end the frame.  In the fifth, the Warriors loaded the bases against him on singles by Marc Gallegos and Romero and a walk to Legg, but Harris induced Lance Foster, their top hitter at .455, to ground out to first for the final out.

Clay Gartner went two innings in relief of Harris, allowing two hits, and got Foster to ground back to the mound with the bases loaded and two out again in the seventh.  Spencer Eager and Sean Eberhardt set the Warriors down 1-2-3 in eighth and ninth innings to finish up.  Corban stranded 10 runners in all.

The Bruin bats backed their hurlers with 12 hits, pinning the loss on starting lefty Jamie McCaffrey (2-1), who was touched for eight hits and six runs, five earned, in 4.1 innings.  He fanned three and walked none.

Josh Rapacz doubled and Timothy Williams singled him in for the Bruins' first run in the first inning.  In the fourth, Williams was hit by a pitch, stole second, and scored on Zac Israel's double to right. 

The Bruins broke the game open with four in the fifth.  Austin Egger doubled to lead off, advanced on a bunt single by Zach Hegelmeyer, and scored as Jared Chase reached on a throwing error by the second baseman on an attempted force out at second.  With runners at the corners, Chase broke for second on a pickoff attempt and Hegelmeyer stole home while Chase was in the rundown, eventually eluding the fielders and getting back safely to first.  After a sacrifice, Rapacz singled in Chase, took second on the throw home, and scored on a double to left-center by Williams.

The Bruins closed out the scoring with two in the seventh off reliever David Hull.  Rapacz doubled down the right-field line, Dixon doubled to right-center to score him, and Egger's single to left plated Dixon.

George Fox finished with 12 hits in all, Rapacz and Hegelmeyer collecting three apiece and Williams and Egger two each.  Rapacz scored three times, while Williams' 2-for-3 boosted his average to .545. Romero was the only Warrior with multiple hits, going 3-for-4. 

NEXT: On the second day of the tournament Friday, George Fox (6-3) hosts the Oregon Institute of Technology at 2:00 p.m.  Corban (7-1) plays Pacific Lutheran University at 2:00 p.m. at Linfield College.