EUGENE, Ore. — PK Park was filled with young fans for Little League Day as No.19 Oregon baseball faced Penn State (12-26, 5-13) in the series finale. Following Saturday’s dramatic 10-inning walk-off by Jack Brooks, Oregon (29-11, 12-6) swept the series, winning 5-0 against the Nittany Lions.
“We had a lot of young ladies on the field this morning,” head coach Mark Wasikowski said. “I encourage them to go out and play with the boys, show them what you’ve got, and beat them. I was thrilled to see them with the other Little Leaguers—whether they’re chasing dreams of playing baseball or just having fun. That’s what it’s all about.”
Starting pitcher Miles Gosztola struggled to find his footing early on as the first two batters were able to get singles off of him and put a runner in scoring position. But Gosztola quickly adjusted, recording back-to-back strikeouts, and the inning ended with Penn State failing to score any runs.
“He didn’t give in,” Wasikowski said. “They got a couple things going there in the first, but then he was able to lock in with mentality, and he started throwing the best bolts.”
The Nittany Lions and the Ducks remained scoreless through the first three innings, as both teams relied heavily on defense.
Oregon broke through in the fourth inning, Drew Smith launched the first pitch of the frame over the left-field wall to put the Ducks on the board. Angel Laya followed with a single after Smith to get on base and was able to score after a double by Burke-Lee Mabeus. With runners on second and third, Naulivou Lauaki hit a fly out but was able to send Maddox Molony home.
The Nittany Lions looked to the bullpen as they put in relief pitcher Kyle Emmons, who was able to secure the last out of the inning as the Ducks led by three. Smith is now the sole home run leader in Big Ten play with seven dingers.
“They were flipping me a lot of breaking balls this weekend,” Smith said. “I just sat on it. That at-bat came right in my barrel and got it out of here.”
Smith and Laya showed up once again in the fifth inning as Smith hit a double and went home to score another run after a single by Laya to get the Ducks a further lead at 4-0.
After a pitch-count mistake by the home plate umpire in the top of the sixth inning, head coach Mike Gambino was ejected from the game after arguing with the umpires.
After the ejection, the Ducks headed up to bat, and Mabeus slammed a home run into the batting cages to further their lead. After a walk, Penn State swapped pitchers once again and put in Mason Horwat. The Ducks continued to lead the Nittany Lions 5-0 going into the seventh inning.
“He’s as strong as an ox,” Wasikowski said when asked about Mabeus. “He’s ready, and he wants to play every single game. I’ll be in the weight room with him probably tomorrow, it’s probably an off day, but he’ll show up, he's just that kid.”
After a few slip-ups from Gosztola, Oregon brought in relief pitcher Gabe Howard. Gosztola had seven strikeouts with three hits in seven innings. In the next inning, they replaced Howard with Cooper Markham.
“All the longer outings you're going to have bumps and bruises along the way,” Gosztola said. “I think the higher pitch count gave more time to massage in all the rest of the pitches. After that was really just to settle in and get the ball to Burke’s glove as much as possible.”
“They all have great arms,” Wasikowski said of the young arms on the team. “It’s just about getting them out in games and getting experience.”
The Ducks entered the ninth with Cooper Strawn on the mound, but Penn State put up a fight as runners were on first and third with one out. Leo Uelmen came in from the bullpen, and with bases loaded and two outs, Laya secured the final flyout to seal the shutout victory.
“I think they did really well staying with each pitch and being present,” said Mabeus on the pitching staff. “One thing we’ve been working on is if you make a mistake, let’s be present enough to overcorrect, even if it means missing drastically on the other side of the plate.”
Oregon returns to PK Park to play against Gonzaga in a midweek showdown on Tuesday, April 28th, at 2:05 PM.