Oregon State Baseball's Slide Continues With Fourth Straight Loss to Ducks
Oregon finished off the season sweep of the Beavers this baseball season with an 8-4 victory that probably puts a dagger in the heart of the Beavers' chances at hosting a Super Regional. The loss drops Oregon State to 32-11 this season.
Oregon grabbed a lead in the top of the first with a solo home run from Jacob Walsh, but the Beavers tied the game in the bottom of the inning with a Gavin Turley homer. Oregon State then took the lead in the bottom of the second when a Trent Caraway single scored Jacob Krieg, and added another run when Dallas Macias scored on a wild pitch.
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The Ducks got a run back in the top of the third with a Ryan Cooney solo homer, but then gave that run right back in the bottom of the fourth when Oregon pitcher Ryan Featherston balked in a run. The Beavers held onto a 4-2 lead until the top of the sixth.
That was when Oregon State's pitching really began to struggle. Tanner Douglas beaned the first batter he faced. He then gave up a single to Drew Smith, and a ground out then put runners on second and third. After a walk to Maddox Molony loaded the bases with one out, Douglas's brief time on the mound ended.
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Laif Palmer came to the mound for the Beavers, and a fielder's choice scored the first run of the inning for the Ducks. A Ryan Cooney single scored two more, giving Oregon a 5-4 lead before a foul out ended the inning.
The Ducks weren't done though, and added two more in the top of the seventh, thanks to a Jacob Walsh double and a Drew Smith single. After a quiet couple innings, they added one final run in the top of the ninth with a Walsh ground out.
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Over the same span of time, Oregon State's hitters ailed to produce, putting only two runners on the base paths, both on walks. With the Ducks up 8-4 headed into the bottom of the ninth, the Beavers finally found some life. They opened the frame with a single and a walk to put two runners on base without an out, but Aiva Arquette grounded into a double play that just about ended any chance of a Beaver comeback. An AJ Singer fielder's choice ended the game a couple batters later.
The Beavers will look to put this whole business behind them with a trip to Hawaii this weekend. The four game series against the Rainbow Warriors will start on Friday, May 2nd, with first pitch set for 9:35 PM PT.
Having grown up in Pocatello, home of the Idaho State Bengals, John Severs is a lifelong fan of small schools that don't always deliver a lot of wins. Prior to writing for On SI, John covered the Beavers for SB Nation's Oregon State blog Building the Dam, with a focus on baseball and women's basketball. When he's not watching college sports he spends most of his time reading, playing video games and annoying cats.