Tag: Drew Cowley

‘This team won’t quit;’ UO coach Mark Wasikowski credits heart, fan electricity for comeback win

“Our fans wouldn’t let us lose,” Coach Wasikowski said. “Our fans were amazing, and I don’t think PK Park has ever been that electric.”

It was a roller coaster ride for your average Oregon fan on Friday night in attendance at Game 1 of the Super Regionals between the Ducks and Oral Roberts Golden Eagles on Friday night.

While the electricity was present and pumping before the first pitch was thrown, with the second-largest crowd in PK Park history, the energy was quickly sapped from the ballpark as Oral Roberts hung an eight-run third inning on the Ducks and blew the game open.

Coming into the contest, everyone knew that the Golden Eagles were no joke — you don’t go 49-11 with a 21-game winning streak by accident. Duck fans were learning the hard way.

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A once raucous environment turned quiet. However, while the fans may have been frustrated and solemn in the stands, the Ducks stayed calm and looked to right the ship.

“This team won’t quit. This team’s got a toughness to them that I’ve never seen before,” said head coach Mark Wasikowski. “They won’t quit. To come back from an 8-0 deficit, as disappointed as they were in the third inning… They’ve been working to build this thing to where a day like this would happen, this number of people and this energy. And to get really punched in the face in the beginning of this game, I don’t think I’d ever be able to imagine another team rebounding from that.”

Back-to-back home runs from Jacob Walsh and Bennett Thompson in the third gave Oregon life, and then a three-run bomb again from Thompson in the fourth inning gave the Ducks a spark. From that point, the comeback was on.

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“You can’t hit a seven-run home run; I’ve never seen it,” Thompson said. “So I was just trying to put a good swing on the ball. That guy had been throwing a lot of strikes, and so I was just able to get a fastball in the zone and not trying to do too much. Ultimately the ball left the yard but I wasn’t trying to do that; it just ended up happening. So that was awesome to get the momentum back on our side there.”

The Ducks tied the game in the bottom of the seventh, and then a walk-off RBI single from Drew Cowley in the bottom of the ninth put Oregon over the top, completing the largest comeback in Super Regionals history.

“Our fans wouldn’t let us lose,” Wasikowski said. “Our fans were amazing, and I don’t think PK Park has ever been that electric. I think it can even get better, but they would not let us lose.”

It was an incredible win, and something that will give plenty of momentum going into Game 2 on Saturday night. Despite the craziness, the Ducks know that if they aren’t able to win one more game against Oral Roberts, then all of this will be for not.

“We’re obviously excited, grounded in the moment, but we understand that we’re still one win away,” Wasikowski said. “So it’s not like anything’s been accomplished other than the fact that it was a fantastic environment, a great game.”

First pitch for Game 2 is scheduled for 6 p.m. on ESPNU Saturday night. ‘[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Twitter Reaction: Oregon Ducks complete largest comeback in Super Regional history

The Ducks erased an 8-0 deficit and beat Oral Roberts on a walk-off RBI in Game 1 of the Super Regionals. Oregon Twitter promptly melted down.

Is there anything in the world that is better than playoff baseball?

If you asked that question to fans of the Oregon Ducks after the Oral Roberts Golden Eagles hung an eight-run third inning on them, then the answer would have been a defiant “yes.”

However, six innings later, the Ducks capped off the biggest comeback in Super Regionals history, getting a walk-off RBI single from Drew Cowley in the bottom of the ninth inning to beat Oral Roberts 9-8, now standing one win away from a trip to the College World Series.

The win continued Oregon’s now 10-game winning streak and ended Oral Roberts’ 21-game winning streak in the process.

As you would expect, social media was a wild place for Oregon fans who were celebrating the victory. Here are some of the best reactions from the night.

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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Baseball recap: Ducks return to win column with brief series with USF

Oregon needed to return to its winning ways this week and the Ducks did just that with a brief two-game series win over San Francisco.

After a disappointing weekend that saw the Oregon Ducks baseball team drop two straight to the Beavers, they received the remedy in the form of the San Francisco Dons for a midweek two-game series at PK Park.

The Ducks took advantage and got themselves back into the win column with a 5-3 win on Tuesday and then a huge 16-6 win for the sweep Wednesday afternoon.

Oregon improved to 22-9 overall.

The Ducks bats came alive in the series finale as they went ahead 6-1 after two innings and 12-4 after just the fourth inning before cruising to victory.

Sabin Ceballos and Bryce Boettcher each homered and Drew Cowley drove in four runs for the Ducks. Austin Anderson earned his third win out of the bullpen.

In the opener, Oregon grabbed a quick 5-0 lead before having to hold on for the two-run win. Closer Josh Mollerus came on in the eighth and recorded the last six out for his sixth save on the season.

Cowley and Ceballos each drove in a pair of runs.

Oregon’s homestand continues this weekend as a big Pac-12 series is on the docket with No. 8 Stanford coming to town. The Cardinal are currently in first place in the conference standings at 10-2 and 22-8 overall.

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Baseball recap: Beavers even series thanks to a three-run homer

Oregon State’s Micah McDowell hit a three-run homer to send the Beavers to a 4-2 win and snap the Duck’s 11-game winning streak.

Sometimes it takes just one swing to win a game. Sometimes it takes just one swing to lose one also.

For the Oregon Ducks baseball team, that one swing came from the Beavers. More specifically, a three-run homer from Oregon State’s Micah McDowell was enough to send the Ducks home with a 4-2 defeat Saturday afternoon at PK Park.

The loss erased Oregon’s 11-game winning stream and dropped the Ducks to 20-8 overall and 7-4 in conference play. The Beavers improved to 19-11 overall and 6-8 in Pac-12 action.

Oregon was able to grab a 2-0 lead thanks to an RBI single from Rikuu Nishida and a run-scoring double from Drew Cowley in the third.

It remained that way until the next half-inning as OSU’s Brady Kasper hit a monster homer to right to make it 2-1 Ducks. Then in the top of the seventh, the Beavers managed to get two runners on to set the stage for Micah McDowell.

The Oregon State designated hitter sent a Matthew Grabmann fastball over the left-center wall to make it 4-2. It was just the senior’s second career home run.

Closer Ryan Brown threw two perfect innings to earn the save.

These two teams will meet on Easter Sunday, weather permitting, for the rubber game of this three-game set with the first pitch scheduled for noon.

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Daniel Susac’s two homers down Ducks in Game 1 of the Pac-12 tournament

Daniel Susac’s two-homer day was too much for the Ducks to overcome as they fall 8-6 to Arizona in the Pac-12 tournament opener.

The Oregon Ducks learned a tough lesson in the opening game of the first annual Pac-12 tournament in Scottsdale, Ariz. and that’s when you get runners in scoring position, you have to find a way to score.

Also, giving up two home runs to Arizona’s best hitter isn’t exactly a good formula for winning.

Daniel Susac belted two home runs to help the Wildcats avenge that three-game sweep at PK Park to take an 8-6 win over the Ducks. Now Oregon will have to fight their way out of the loser’s bracket. They’ll face the loser of the Stanford/Arizona State game tomorrow at 9 a.m.

Oregon left two runners on base in the seventh and eighth innings that ended a potential rally. The Ducks scored one in the ninth, but they couldn’t come all the way back.

Arizona took a 3-0 lead, but the Ducks managed to cut into the deficit with run-scoring singles from Colby Shade and Brennen Milone. It was 4-2 Wildcats in the sixth when Anthony Hall crushed a pitch off of the right field foul pole for a three-run homer and the Ducks had a brief 5-4 advantage.

But pitcher RJ Gordon ran out of gas in the seventh, loaded the bases and gave way to the bullpen. Unfortunately, Arizona was able to score two and re-take the lead at 6-5.

Oregon gave itself chance after chance in the late innings, but it could never get that one big hit to get over the hump. Susac’s second homer, which came in the ninth inning, was the two insurance runs Arizona needed. The Ducks scored one run on Drew Cowley’s RBI double, but it wasn’t enough.

Around the horn: Gauchos edge the Ducks 7-5 to earn a series split

UC-Santa Barbara defeated Oregon 7-5 to earn a series split this weekend at PK Park.

Oregon Ducks baseball coach Mark Wasikowski would have probably signed up for a four-game split with UC-Santa Barbara before the weekend. But after winning the first two games, a split doesn’t seem so great.

The Gauchos won the final two games, including today’s 7-5 decision from the Ducks, who fell to 7-5 on the season.

UCSB scored three in the first inning and seemed to have an answer for every Duck rally throughout the day. Oregon did eventually tie the game 4-4 in the fifth, but the Gauchos homered in the next frame.

It was also the second game in a row where the Oregon starting pitcher didn’t have a stellar afternoon. Tommy Brandenburg could just get through two innings, walking two and plunking two others. The bullpen did their best to hold the Gauchos down as much as possible, but they have to cover 15 innings over the last two contests and it finally caught up with them.