Hits were few and far between in the Oregon Ducks 1-0 victory over the Portland Pilots in Portland on Tuesday night.
The game was all about pitchers. Sophomore Isaiah Carranza, in just his second start of the season, struck out four batters in a one-hit shutout, spanning five innings of work. He walked just one batter and picked up his first win of the season. It was his first start since Feb. 20 against Fresno State.
The Pilots countered with Tate Budnick, who kept the Ducks in check for nearly the entire game. The exception came in the third inning when Tim Susnara started the inning with a double that bounced against the center field wall. After a fly ball out advanced him to third base, Taylor Travess put the Ducks on the board, knocking a base hit to give the Ducks the only run they needed.
In the Oregon bullpen, Parker Kelly, Cooper Stiles and Connor Zwetsch each worked one inning of relief. They combined to strike out five batters and hold the Pilots scoreless, allowing just two hits. Oregon brought in Kenyon Yovan to close the door on the Pilots and pick up his ninth save of the season.
The Ducks improved to 16-6 on the season, their 11th win in the last 13 games.
Oregon was held to just one hit after its third-inning run. Budnick pitched seven innings in the loss before turning things over to the Pilots bullpen to shut down the Ducks in the final two innings.
This was just a one-game series between the Ducks and Pilots. The two teams will play two additional one-game series later this season. For now, the Ducks head to face last season’s Pac-12 champion Utah Utes, in Salt Lake City, Utah. The teams will play a three-game series starting Thursday at 6:00 pm.
Follow Zak Laster on Twitter @zlast3445