CLAREMONT — Eamon McNeil went off as the Occidental baseball team bounced back with a pair of wins at Pomona-Pitzer on Saturday.

Oxy won 12-2 in Game 1 and 10-9 in Game 2.

McNeil, a junior outfielder from Portland, was 2 for 4 with a home run, three RBIs and three runs scored in Game 1, and 3 for 5 with a pair of home runs and six RBIs in Game 2. He hit 7 for 13 with four home runs and 10 RBIs in the series.

McNeil's homer in Game 2 came during a five-run ninth that helped Oxy squeak out an impressive comeback victory.

The Tigers had hit a slump at the plate and dropped their last six conference games. 

From the Coach: "Eamon McNeil was obviously outstanding all weekend for us," Oxy head coach Luke Wetmore said. "This is one of my prouder days in a Tiger uniform. We badly needed to bounce back and our guys responded in a big way today."

Game 2: Occidental 10, Pomona-Pitzer 9

With their backs against the ropes down 7-3 in Game 2, the Tigers responded with two runs in the eighth and five runs in the ninth to sneak away with the victory. 

Dean Abramson, Oxy's do-it-all senior, started Game 2, giving up three earned in six innings of work. He started out the season as a sidearm reliever and then became Oxy's starting catcher and has even had some important at bats throughout the season.

Bryan Smith went 2 for 5 with two runs scored, an RBI and two doubles, Antonio Andrade was 2 for 5 with three RBIs, Reid Gibbs was 2 for 5 with a double, and Jake Fredrickson was 2 for 3 with a double and a run scored.

Game 1: Occidental 12, Pomona-Pitzer 2

The Tigers got on top with a four-run first inning and stayed on top during a less thrilling first game of the day. 

JP Flores was 2 for 4 with a pair of runs scored, Joey Garza was 2 for 4 with a run and two RBIs, Bryan Smith was 1 for 4 with an RBI-double and a run scored, Antonio Andrade went 2 for 4 with a run scored, a double and an RBI, and Reid Gibbs was 2 for 3 with two runs, two RBIs and two stolen bases. 

Nolan McCarthy started and pitched well for Oxy, giving up two earned in 6.2 innings. 

Season Impact: Oxy improves to 19-17 overall and 11-10 in SCIAC play.

Making the Playoffs: The playoff picture for the Tigers is complicated. If they win all three of their remaining games, they are likely to be in. If they win one of those game, they are out. If they win two games, it gets even more complicated with multiple possible tiebreakers."

"I haven't even looked at the tiebreaker scenarios," Wetmore said. "We are just focused on playing good baseball and taking it one pitch at a time."

Next Game: Oxy is back in action next Friday against Chapman. The Tigers and Panthers will finish the regular season with a doubleheader at Chapman.