Four Ducks named to all-regional team; Nishida Most Valuable Player

Four Ducks were named to the All-Nashville Regional team with Rikuu Nishida as the Most Valuable Player.

Whether it’s a wood bat or an aluminum bat, it’s all the same to Oregon right fielder Rikuu Nishida.

The junior from Japan and three other Ducks were named to the All-Nashville Regional team after Oregon went 3-0 and advanced to the Super Regional round.

Nishida was also named Most Valuable Player of the regional after hitting .500 (6-for-12) with three runs driven in. He was joined by Sabin Ceballos, Drew Cowley and Grayson Grinsell on the all-regional squad.

Ceballos just went 2-for-13 with a homer and four RBIs, but it was his defensive prowess on the hot corner that earned him this honor. His barehanded play in the seventh inning to end a Vanderbilt rally alone probably got Ceballos on the team.

Without that play, the Commodores might have come back and beat the Ducks and Oregon might not be in the Super Regionals.

Cowley was a star at the plate as he went 6-for-13 with six RBIs, including a home run.

Grinsell appeared in two of the three games and was great. In Game 1 against Xavier, the lefty freshman threw two innings of relief where he was a bit wild with three walks, but he held the Musketeers in check.

Things went a lot better in the second and deciding game with Xavier where Grinsell started and threw four scoreless innings, giving up just three hits and striking out seven. His effort gave the Oregon offense time to get hot in the fifth with three runs in the fifth and six more in the sixth for the 11-2 win.

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