EUGENE, Ore. — The Oregon Ducks baseball team faced off against the George Mason University Patriots in the fourth and final matchup of the series. Oregon secured the sweep, beating George Mason 11-1 on the back of great pitching and excellent hitting.
Oregon took the first three games in dominant fashion, outscoring George Mason 34-11. Its offensive explosion was aided by true freshman Angel Laya and veteran senior Drew Smith, who both crushed two home runs headed into the last game of the series.
The Ducks started junior Ryan Featherston for the first time this season. The Patriots started graduate student Thomas Wrehe, a Rice University transfer and graduate student who hadn't made a start in two years because of Tommy John surgery. The Ducks looked to go for the sweep in the opening weekend homestand.
Featherston shut down George Mason in the top of the first. Oregon jumped all over Wrehe, who loaded the bases with no outs and then walked in the first run of the game. Oregon star shortstop Maddux Molony smacked a two-RBI double, which chased Wrehe from the game. Wrehe did not record a single out, and the two runners inherited by Patriot reliever Brandon Hsu scored on groundouts. Oregon ended the inning scoring five runs.
After Featherston quietly shut down the Patriot offense, the Ducks got back on their roll as second baseman Ryan Cooney lined a leadoff double to left field. After a Jax Gimenez single, designated hitter Domonic Hellman shot one of his own through the infield to plate another run.
“A very cerebral player, he’s a smart kid, he's got a lot of depth to him,” head coach Mark Wasikowski said of Hellman, the big power bat.
Drew Smith collected his second and third RBIs of the game on a single that plated Hellman and Gimenez, extending the Ducks' lead to 8-0.
The third inning marked the first in which neither team scored, as both pitchers settled into a groove. Featherston continued to shove for the Ducks in the fourth inning, collecting his fifth strikeout. The Patriots replaced Hsu with freshman Aiden Parker, who pitched a scoreless bottom of the fourth. The top of the fifth saw a slick double play started by the third baseman, Smith, as George Mason's bats remained quiet.
The bottom of the fifth showed how much depth this Oregon team has. Catcher Brayden Jaksa led off with a single and scored on a Jack Brooks RBI triple.
“Jack is a really good player,” Wasikowski said. “We see it every day when we're in practice.”
Cooney knocked Brooks in on a single, bringing the Oregon lead to ten runs.
“I just use my abilities, which is just run fast,” Brooks said postgame. “So I’m out there just having fun.”
In his last inning of work, Featherston sat the George Mason lineup down one-two-three, finishing the day going six scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out five on only 81 pitches. Featherston had high praise for the Patriots' hitters.
“They did a good job of staying in counts and fighting off pitches,” he said after the game. “Hats off to them.”
The Ducks brought out junior lefty reliever Toby Twist in the seventh. Twist allowed the Patriots to score their first run of the game when their centerfielder Luciano Terilli hit a sacrifice fly to defensive replacement Elijah Cook in left field.
Devin Bell came in for the top of the eighth for Oregon and held the Patriots scoreless, working around a two-out single. Shout played after the top of the inning to the joy of the PK Park faithful. Sam Dilella came out for George Mason, allowing one run as the Ducks started rotating in bench bats. Pinch-hitter Josh Schleichardt scored on a wild pitch, giving Oregon an 11-1 lead.
Sophomore and Lassen Community College transfer Luke Morgan came in to close the game for the Ducks. In Morgan's first appearance of the season, he worked around a pair of two-out baserunners to secure the victory for Oregon, 11-1.
Smith was the player of the game for the Ducks, going 2-for-4 with three RBIs while helping out with the glove, recording five assists.
“Sticking with our plan and our approach,” Smith said of what has helped his recent success. “Coach has done a really good job on film and making sure we’re really ready.”
Pitching was also key to the dominant win, as the staff only allowed six hits total to George Mason.
Up next for the Ducks, they will take on Youngstown State in a four-game weekend series starting Thursday, Feb. 19. Youngstown is coming off a hard-fought series versus the Auburn Tigers, so it will be another early test for the Ducks.
“They had a couple of arms that throw really well,” Wasikowski said. “We watched those games already, but have to prepare more.”
George Mason will play next in the Swig & Swine Classic on Feb. 20 in Charleston, S.C.