Sophomore pitcher Adrian Gomez held the Ducks (3-4) to one run over five innings, and the Washington Huskies (3-5) fended off a late Oregon rally to win 5-3 in the first game of a two-game series Tuesday night in Seattle.
Gomez, a 170-pound left-hander from Battleground, Wash., was effective, striking out four Ducks and giving up one run with no walks and five hits. Duck freshman starter Madison Boer also went five innings, but the three runs he gave up in the bottom of the fifth, including a two-run double by sophomore catcher Pierce Rankin, was the difference.
Boer walked five batters, hit a batter, and gave up four runs on three hits. In relief, junior Ryan Fleckenstein threw two innings, giving up one run on two hits, and striking out two Washington batters.
Freshman reliever Chris Garrison pitched the eighth inning in his first action of the year, giving up zero runs on zero hits.
Down 4-1 going into the top of the seventh inning, the Ducks scored a run in the seventh and in the eighth, but the Huskies scored in the bottom of the seventh, and Oregon went into the top of the ninth needing two runs to tie the game.
Senior outfielder Caleb Tommasini struck out to start the ninth, and after junior outfielder Curtis Raulinaitis walked, freshman infielder KC Serna grounded into a double play to end the game.
Serna led the Ducks, going 3-for-5 with a triple and a run scored, and junior right fielder Jett Hart went 1-for-4 with a run scored and a stolen base.
For Washington, Rankin went 2-for-2 with two runs scored, two RBI’s and a walk.
The Ducks and Huskies play the finale of the short series today, with the first pitch scheduled for 3 p.m.
– Ben Schorzman