By: Ian Sutliff

Eugene, OR-- The Ducks went into Sunday 3-0 after a Saturday where it beat Xavier twice and totaled fourteen runs. Sunday’s series finale was a different story though as Nick Boyle cruised through the first four frames as he kept Oregon off the board while striking out three and allowing just one hit. Going into the fifth inning, freshman Jakson Pace had retired 14 of the last 16 batters he’d faced after giving up a one out double to Andrew Walker in the first. After allowing a walk to Teddy Deters, Carter Hendrickson hit a line drive double down the left field which was misplayed for a second by Tanner Smith, allowing Deters to score from first. 

The Musketeers would hold the 1-0 lead into the seventh inning where the Ducks’ only hit to that point was an infield single from Gavin Grant in the third inning. After holding Xavier to no runs in the top of the seventh after they loaded the bases, Josiah Cromwick took the first pitch he saw and deposited it over the left field fence for a solo shot to tie the game at one. In the eighth, Dylan McShane made his collegiate debut for the Ducks and the 6’9” right-hander impressed. He only had to make 12 pitches and retired the Musketeers in order, while adding two strikeouts. Grant led off the eighth for Oregon and started the inning with another blast to put the Ducks in front for the first time on Sunday. Rikuu Nishida followed that with a single and a stolen base to give Oregon a runner in scoring position with nobody out. Nishida would come around to score a couple batters later on an RBI single to center from Smith. San Francisco transfer Josh Mollerus came in for the Ducks in the ninth and had another strong outing, retiring three straight hitters after allowing a leadoff walk. He picked up the save for Oregon as they closed out the opening series with a 3-1 victory. 

Oregon pitching was solid again and it was thanks to four newcomers holding Xavier to just one run on a day where offense was hard to come by for either team. Pace recorded the first quality start of the season for the Ducks and the bullpen didn’t allow a single hit. While the offense didn’t have the same kind of output it did on Saturday, Oregon didn’t help itself on the bases, where Cromwick and Smith were doubled off at first in the second and fourth innings, respectively. Clutch hitting was huge though as Oregon scored all three of its runs from the seventh inning on, but will look to get it going earlier in their next series. 

Next up for Oregon is a four game series in Goleta, California with UC Santa Barbara. The Ducks will get Monday-Thursday off and get going on Friday where they look to get another series victory against a Santa Barbara team that has started the season 2-1. First pitch in Goleta will be at 5:05 P.M. on Friday, with a double-header on Saturday, and a day game on Sunday.