By Max Ragel 

Oregon Ducks (7-3)

Coach Mark Wasikowski and his squad look to bounce back from a tough series at home with the Santa Barbara Gauchos. This team combined for just four runs through the first two games of the series while letting up 13 runs. They were able to take advantage of rainy conditions and poor Gaucho pitching that issued 12 walks and hit four batters to win the last game of the series, 16-9. A problem for the Oregon pitching staff against the Gauchos was the big inning. Starting pitchers RJ Gordon, Grayson Grinsell, and Kevin Seitter flashed moments of high velocity and great command before each giving up a multi-run inning that forced the offense to play catch up. Oregon’s offense will also need to find some consistency in order to go on a run starting in Phoenix. With all the day in and day out issues this team has faced to start the year the talent and discipline is there, this team is poised to catch fire on any given day.

Grand Canyon Antelopes (6-5): 

GCU started off the year hot, winning its first three games in the MLB Desert Invitational by a combined score of 19-5. They’ve since cooled off, going 3-5 over their last eight contests, but this team still poses a threat to the Ducks who look to get a streak rolling on the road. GCU has five players batting over .320 and a solid everyday group of position players in the field. The pitching staff is substantially weaker than Santa Barbara’s without a set group of starting pitchers and a shaky bullpen. Despite holes in the rotation this is still a dangerous Lopes team that will look to give the Ducks a run for their money.

Prediction:  

Oregon has a real opportunity to sweep this GCU team on the road and spark a run early in the season. Expect coach Wasikowski to shorten the leash on his starting pitchers in order to avoid the big innings that hurt them against Santa Barbara. But with sunny weather and a healthy lineup look for this team to explode on offense and take advantage of whatever mistakes the GCU pitching staff makes. 2-0 on the week is a real possibility for the Ducks but it wont come without a fight. First pitch is Tuesday, March 5th at 5:05 PM PST.