By Isaac Dubey
On a wet and grimy Saturday at PK Park, the Ducks sneaked past USC in the second game of the series 5-3. With a 90 minute delay of first pitch due to rain, Grayson Grinsell started at the mound and had a roller-coaster performance in the first five innings. Grinsell didn’t allow a run in the first two innings, but gave up two runs off his throwing error in the third and allowed a one-run homer in the fourth. However, he ended strong with three consecutive strikeouts in the fifth inning that ended his day.
After Grinsell exited the game, the Oregon infield shined as the Ducks completed double plays to end the seventh and eighth inning. These double plays proved to be instrumental as Oregon hung on to a two-run lead beyond the fourth inning. After the game, Grinsell credited his defense calling them “one of the best in the country.”
With the Ducks down 3-1 Oregon’s only substantial scoring run came as they piled up RBI hits in the fourth inning. As USC’s new pitcher Fisher Johnson stepped up to the mound, Meggers, Molony, and Boettcher all helped Ducks score. The most heroic of the three was Molony’s unselfish sacrifice bunt which sent two runners home. Oregon led 5-3 after that inning which would prove to be the final.
Coach Wasikowski said he knows his team has a high ceiling, but today was a “get it done day,” and that Baseball “isn’t ice skating. There’s no beauty points.” With this win, Oregon secured their fifth series win against PAC-12 opponents. The Ducks will have one more game to go against the Trojans on Sunday at 12:05 PM.