Oregon baseball took a lead into the ninth inning but couldn’t close the game Sunday, suffering an 8-5 loss to Pepperdine in the final game of the Angels Classic in Tempe, Arizona. 

Ducks pitcher Christian Ciuffetelli walked a batter with one out in the top of the ninth, then gave up the go-ahead two-run home run to Aharon Modlin, giving Pepperdine a 6-5 lead. The Waves would go on to add two more insurance runs on three hits and two walks, pushing the score to 8-5. Oregon’s hopes for a rally were cut short when Gavin Grant hit into a double-play following Jack Scanlon’s leadoff walk.

Pepperdine jumped out to an early lead in the first inning when Oregon starter Robert Ahlstrom walked in a run, but the Ducks tied the game in the bottom of the second on Jack Scanlon’s sacrifice fly. In the bottom of the fourth, Gabe Matthews and Tanner Smith each hit two-RBI singles, giving Oregon a 5-1 cushion.

The lead was cut to one in the top of the sixth when Pepperdine singled five times and scored three. The score would remain 5-4 until the ninth-inning explosion from the Pepperdine offense. 

Ahlstrom went 5.2 innings for the Ducks, surrendering four earned runs while striking out seven. Hunter Breault threw 2.1 in relief, giving up one hit and no walks. 

With his fourth-inning single, Matthews is now ninth in program history in multi-RBI games with 18. He was 5-12 on the series with a triple, a double, and four RBIs. 

The Ducks remain winless on the season, and have compiled a team ERA of 6.92 over the first three games.

Oregon travels to Phoenix on Tuesday for a 12 p.m. game against Grand Canyon University before returning home for a weekend series against Nevada.