Charles Fischer

10-9 Portland after eight innings. Oregon's Seth Mattox was just a strike away from ending the inning, but gave up a three-run dinger instead. Oregon stranded two to end the inning...

9-7 Ducks, after seven innings as Featherston fell apart. Then Portland brings in Nolan Umlandt, Ian's brother to put Oregon out 1-2-3. Scary time!

9-4 Ducks after six innings, and we've seen smart base running to pick up extra bases that help score runs. Ryan Featherston continued his good day against Portland thus far, and whenever Oregon has a man on third with less than two outs...I always want to sacrifice, as an out for a run (when you have 27 outs in a game) is always a good trade to me. Coach Waz doesn't always do that though with these superb batters, but this time he had Ryan Cooney bunt down the first base line to score a run...and beat it out to first on an error. Then a sacrifice infield grounder that scored a second. Good baseball!

7-4 Ducks, as the Oregon batters seem to hit it right to Portland fielders. Ryan Featherston is getting his stuff back, as he struck-out four straight Pilot batters over two innings. Can he keep it up?

7-4 Ducks after four innings, as Sanford is still shaky. He filled the bases with walks and was replaced by another pitcher who is also trying to regain his confidence up in Ryan Featherston. Portland scored on a passed ball, and on a base hit that scored a runner from third.

7-2 Ducks after three innings, as Portland had a couple of errors to help Oregon, and the Ducks have had some good hitting to score a run from a Drew Smith infield sprint to first base. Another run scored as Carter Garate distracted the pitcher from third base...and got a balk to score. On defense, Oregon had a double play that was close to being a triple play, with Garate in the middle of it again! He grabbed the grounder, stepped on third, and fired to second for two, but the relay to first base did not quite make it in time. No problem as Will Sanford closed them out.

5-2 Ducks after two innings, as Portland got a two-run homer off Sanford. To add insult to injury...Oregon left bases-loaded stranded at the end of the inning!

5-0 Ducks after one inning, and DAMN...I wish we could start EVERY game this way! The Portland Pilot starting pitcher, Kayden Starr, is from local Marist High School, and it was cool to see him pitch to local player Maddox Molony from Springfield. Problem is...he was probably too nervous and could not get through the first inning, as Oregon batters got two walks, and a bunch of base hits through the gaps to score runners. Great start!

EUGENE, Ore. – Lyndsey Grein was named the National Pitcher of the Week by the NFCA, Softball America and D1 Softball on Tuesday. She is the first Duck player to be honored by all three organizations in the same week. Grein led No.5 Oregon to a series win over No. 7 UCLA as well as a midweek win in the Rivalry Series at Oregon State. The junior from Mokena, Ill., posted a 3-0 record with a 0.00 ERA that included two wins and a complete-game shutout against No. 6 UCLA. She was named the Big Ten Pitcher of the Week on Monday. For the week, Grein struck out 18 batters, walked five and allowed nine hits in 13.1 innings. Opponents hit .196 against her. In Sunday's deciding game of the UCLA series, Grein pitched a three-hit, five-inning shutout and struck out three. The Ducks won 9-0 to take a one-game lead for first place in the Big Ten Conference. It was the first time the Bruins were shutout this season. In the series opener on Friday, Grein started and threw 5.1 scoreless innings and struck out eight in the Ducks' 3-1 win. In the Ducks' midweek game at Oregon State, Grein threw the final two innings and struck out five in the Ducks' come-from-behind, 5-3 win. Grein has yet to allow a run to a top-25 opponent this season (six games, 28.0 innings). Sunday, she recorded her 400th career strikeout. Oregon plays a three-game series at Indiana beginning Friday. Lyndsey Grein 2025 HONORS Emma Cox, Fr., C • Big Ten Freshman of the Week (2-10) Katie Flannery, So., INF • Louisville Slugger/NFCA National Player of the Week (2-25) • Big Ten Player of the Week (2-24) Lyndsey Grein, Jr., RHP • Wilson/NFCA National Pitcher of the Week (4-22) • Softball America National Player of the Week (4-22) • D1 Softball National Pitcher of the Week (4-22) • Big Ten Pitcher of the Week (4-21) • Softball America National Player of the Week (3-11) • Wilson/NFCA National Pitcher of the Week (2-25) • Softball America National Player of the Week (2-25) • Big Ten Pitcher of the Week (2-24) • Mary Nutter Classic Co-Most Valuable Pitcher (D1 Softball) Stefini Ma’ake, Fr., DP/UTIL • Big Ten Freshman of the Week (4-7) • Big Ten Freshman of the Week (3-31) • Big Ten Freshman of the Week (2-17) Rylee McCoy, Fr., INF • D1 Softball National Freshman of the Week (2-25) • Big Ten Freshman of the Week (2-24) • Mary Nutter Classic Most Valuable Player (D1 Softball) Elise Sokolsky, R-Jr., RHP • Big Ten Pitcher of the Week (4-7) • Softball America National Player of the Week (3-11)

Great idea!

Jon...that was such a great post above. Everybody forgets about the Blue-Chip Ratio, but it is a thing...and it makes sense. Many of us Oregon fans did not see the difference in recruiting the trenches, and the difference it made in our results until the recent years of elite recruiting. You don't win big games without elite trenches, and those players are going to be attending the Super-Two conference schools. Even if the Super-Two did not plan to set themselves up well in the Playoffs--it would end up with one of them winning the 'Natty each year anyway due to the quality of player and coaching...from the additional revenue generated being in a Super-Two conference. But the question is....do we include teams that have NO CHANCE to win a 'Natty versus teams like Oregon, that if seeded properly not only have a chance to progress further in the Playoffs, but actually have a chance to win it? Your comment about the numbers of eyeballs is....just about everything here isn't it? Why do we have the silly conference tournaments? More eyeballs and revenue... And the eyeballs watching the big matchups are naturally going to be a ton higher. I still say...."make it 16 teams" to stop the nonsense about the little guy being left out, as there would be room for anyone with a real chance of winning to be in the Playoff. No byes, and structure it like the NFL as you have suggested in the past. Jon.....You Are...

This will be at PK Park, and obviously--we gotta win every game possible from this point forward. Early Playoff projections this morning show Oregon as a No. 2 NCAA Playoff Regional Seed again...and traveling to the Cal State-Irvine Regional, which is better than last week's projection of the Ducks as a No. 2 in the Corvallis Regional. Better yet...let's win a bunch and host our own Regional! Our RPI is No. 45 out of 300 D1 Baseball teams, and we play No. 9 RPI in Beavis this weekend four times. Oregon is coming off a crucial series win over UCLA, where both Grayson Grinsell and Mason Neville were named B1G Players of the Week. On the hill for Oregon will be Will Sanford, and I am hoping he can get his confidence back. I also anticipate seeing Ian Umlandt for a few innings too. Will Sanford

And they wonder why the Super-2 want to take control? So that teams that come from lower conferences like Boise State and Arizona State do not hose us....as Oregon was in the Playoff. How much did that cost Oregon and the conference? It may not be fair to the other conferences...but it will not be fair to us if we continue with this nonsense. They will get their two years of out-sized reward, and then....

It is a scheduling thing...as on another site they reported that prior to playing Michigan this last weekend...the teams Iowa had played had a B1G winning percentage of .375 in conference. Michigan stands at .444 right now, although the Wolverines took a game from us, while Iowa swept them. Your point is quite accurate; the Hawkeyes have not played the best in the conference yet. As stated before--Iowa plays Indiana, No. 6, and Washington, No. 5, and Oregon No. 3 in the conference before the end of the season. We have a chance to catch them... We're going to be SAFE, Beavis!

Thus far...we have about 70% of the sports finished with championships in the B1G, and you can see them right here, although they have not credited Oregon with the Womens Golf Championship yet. What I have below is how many each of the B1G teams have won thus far, and I do NOT count the conference Tournament winners, just those who won the conference the tough way, through the season. For those teams who tied for the conference championship from the regular season--I counted a championship for both. It is unfortunate that Lacrosse counts the same as football--but I'm sure other conference members feel the same about Indoor Track. B1G Championships Won: Oregon: 5 (Womens Cross-Country, Football, Mens Indoor Track, Womens Indoor Track, Womens Golf) Ohio State: 3 Penn State: 3 Michigan: 2 Indiana: 2 USC: 2 Wisconsin: 1 Northwestern: 1 Nebraska: 1 Michigan State: 1 UCLA: 1 Considering the remaining sports left...I do not project Ohio State or Penn State to catch Oregon. In fact, the Ducks have a shot to add to their total with Baseball, and in particular Softball. I will add to this over the next two months, as it is a curious thing. Is Oregon going to end up as the BEST overall athletic program in the B1G in our first year? Nikko Reed finishes off Penn State...

Amen. The research he does...and then his analysis from that is a gift to all of us. As a fellow writer--I can attest to the boatload of time it takes to create an article like Jon's...and yet he keeps writing as if they were easy.

If you write for the Bruins...you gotta come up with something to get attention...right? A Little Too Much Blue...

The conference standings are as follows, and Iowa plays Indiana, and Washington before Oregon plays at Iowa for the final B1G season series. We have our chances! And four of the top five are former Pac-12 teams...

This week's D1Baseball rankings came out, and the Ducks moved from No. 16 up to No. 13 after winning a series at home against then No. 10, UCLA. The ominous part of the rankings is how Oregon State has moved up to No. 3 in the nation, and Oregon plays four games with them starting on Friday. (Three at PK Park, and one in Corvallis) That is great for the RPI, but damn...we gotta get two games off them! We have a shot at hosting a Regional, but we need to win most of our remaining games and split with Beavis. All the other ranked B1G teams are UCLA at No. 15,....and that's it! Too late Beavis!

Jon....GREAT stuff as always, and while I hoped that Oregon might sneak up on people this year--I acknowledge that those days are now past. Last year was the "surprise tour," and as you said--our schedule is perfect for doing well. But I have to think that Ohio State is reloading well too, so we have some great games ahead of us. This will be a monster game...

Ducks Late Rally Clinches Series vs. No. 10 UCLA EUGENE, Ore. — Freshman Burke-Lee Mabeus hit a leadoff home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to break a tie and spark a four-run rally to lead No. 16 Oregon to a 10-6 Big Ten Conference series-clinching win over No. 10 UCLA on Sunday at PK Park in front of 3,005 fans. After UCLA tied the game with a run in the top of the eighth, Mabeus stepped to the plate and drove the first pitch he saw the opposite way for the go-ahead homer. The freshman’s long ball started an inning where Oregon (27-11, 14-7 Big Ten) sent 10 batters to the plate and built a four-run lead before eventually leave the bases loaded. Following Mabeus’ home run, Carter Garate continued the rally with a one-out walk before moving to third on a Mason Neville hustle double. Dominic Hellman loaded the bases on a hit-by-pitch before giving way to pinch runner Jax Gimenez. Jacob Walsh gave the Ducks some cushion lining a two-run single into the right-center field gap putting runners at the corners before he swiped second to put two in scoring position. Still with one out, Drew Smith drove a 2-2 pitch deep into centerfield scoring Gimenez from third on the sacrifice fly. Oregon’s dramatic rally overshadowed Neville’s record setting effort from earlier in the game. The Ducks’ centerfielder belted a three-run home run in the fourth inning to cap the Ducks’ four-run frame and give UO a 6-4 lead. The homer was his 19th of the season, setting a new Oregon single-season record for long balls. How It Happened: After a 1-2-3 first inning, the Ducks sent six hitters to the plate in the second inning while scoring a pair of runs. Smith led off the frame with a single and moved to third on an Anson Aroz base hit before scoring on a Maddox Molony RBI single. After Mabeus moved the runners to second and third with a sacrifice bunt, Aroz scored on a Ryan Cooney ground out to make it 2-0. UCLA took a 4-2 lead with a run in the third and three more in the fourth, but the Ducks rallied in their half of the fourth with four runs to regain the lead. Aroz led off the inning with a solo home run to trim the lead to one. After Cooney singled to left and Carter Garate reached on an infield single, Neville blasted the record-breaking homer to put Oregon on top by two. UCLA (29-10, 13-5 Big Ten) scored on in the sixth and one in the eighth to tie the game, but Oregon got out a jam in the eighth to keep it tied to set up the four-run rally. The Bruins had the bases loaded with one out after tying the game, and Oregon turned to Seth Mattox out of the bullpen. After falling behind 2-0, he got Roman Martin to hit a weak chopper toward third where Garate gloved it, stepped on their and fired home to get the runner trying to score ending the Bruins threat. Box Score Notes: The announced attendance (3,005) marked the 36th time in the history of PK Park that a crowd has exceeded 3,000 fans … Oregon’s series win was its ninth this season with just one series loss … Neville went 3-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored … Walsh was 2-for-3 with two RBI … Aroz went 2-for-4 with a RBI and two runs scored … Mattox moved to 2-0 with the win. On Deck: The Ducks play the first of five consecutive nonconference games when they host Portland at 5:05 p.m. on Tuesday (B1G+). Coach Waz Quotes: Head Coach Mark Wasikowski On the game overall… “Good. It’s good to win a conference weekend series, they’re hard to win, and against a good program, UCLA. The guys played a complete game today. They were a little bit salty after how yesterday ended. Thought we played a really good game yesterday through five plus innings, and we were salty about how the thing ended. We didn’t give ourselves a chance to win three games by the way we played yesterday, and came out today and took care of business.” On Burke-Lee Mabeus’ home run… “Really impressive. I mean, the guy’s throwing 97-98 miles per hour, and Burke went first pitch fastball. I think he just got a good barrel on it. And I was happy to see him being aggressive in that situation. For a freshman, that’s pretty cool. He caught a win too, today. Another win that he caught, that’s equally as important.” On Mason Neville breaking the single-season home run record… “He’s a talented young player, and we recruited him really hard out of high school and we finished in second place, which is as good as 10th place when it comes to recruiting. It stinks when you lose a kid out of high school. And then when he decided he was going to come our way after his first year, we were thrilled. I would have loved to have another year with him to be able to help him develop, because he’s a tremendous young man. The only sad part is I didn’t get a third year with him to help him in his game, because he’s been fun to work with on a daily basis. He’s not perfect, none of these kids are. But on a daily basis, he tries his best, he gives you everything he’s got. He’s got a great heart.” Mason Neville On the team’s current attitudes… “We’ve got a chip on our shoulder. We know we’re a good ball club, and we can do a lot of good things. We went to a Super Regional last year and had almost our whole lineup come back. The standard is high, but it’s baseball. You’re going to lose some games here and there, but we also shoot to win every game.” On if he feels relief after achieving his new record... “It’s not something I really focus on too much. It’s pretty cool, but it’s just about getting to Omaha. That’s the main focus. It’s a pretty cool thing to do, don’t get me wrong, but I’m not really thinking about that. I just want to put good swings on the ball and help my team win.” Jason Reitz Seth Mattox On how he feels about his pitching right now... “I feel good. I feel like I’m attacking the zone more. Getting ahead is big, especially with my stuff. As long as I can get ahead, I can get to my secondary pitches, which is what I want to do.” On how the pitching staff had crucial outs today and what it does for their confidence... “It’s massive. I think that builds confidence for every guy that pitched today, knowing that their stuff can beat anybody. That’s a really good hitting team. So, just knowing that our stuff can win is a huge confidence booster.” Burke-Lee Mabeus On if he thought his homerun was going over... “No, I think I was sprinting out of the box. I wasn’t sure. They have a pretty talented left fielder out there. I saw he got a decent jump on it, and I was thinking maybe I would get a hustle double. I was looking for the umpires, trying to see if they were going to tell me it was over. I think I found out when I was rounding second, and I was still sprinting.” On the team’s ability to execute bunts... “We work on those every day. There are some days when the coaches let us work on bunts only during hitting. If it’s going to make us better, they want us to do it. It’s something we really value as a part of our game. When you play good baseball, it helps for sure.”

Ducks win 10-6! Seth Mattox finishes out the Bruins in the ninth, as Oregon wins the series!

10-6 Ducks after eight innings! Umlandt gave up another run, but Seth Mattox came in for relief and stopped a bases-loaded rally by UCLA. Freshman catcher Burke-Lee Mabeus hit a homer to put Oregon up by one, and then Jacob Walsh came through with a huge single that scored two!

6-5 Ducks after seven innings as the Pride of Sherwood Oregon, Ian Umlandt, dispatched the Bruins, but Oregon had two base runners again with no outs...and got nothing!

6-5 Ducks after six innings. Ian Umlandt gave up a run in relief, but left the Bruins with bases-loaded!