Oregon was flying high following last night’s upset win against No. 1 UCLA, but the Bruins clipped the Ducks’ wings late in the final game of the series on a game-winning grand slam in the eighth inning to secure their 9-6 victory.

No. 13 Oregon baseball (35-13, 17-8 Big Ten) dropped game one of its pivotal series against UCLA (45-4, 24-0 Big Ten) today. Standout performances from Miles Gosztola (5.1 IP, 9 K, 2 H, 2 ER) and Brayden Jaksa (2-3, 3 RBI, HR) weren’t enough to hold off the nation’s best team’s late-inning rally, and the Bruins clinched a monumental series win heading into the last week of the regular season.

After a quiet top half of the first for Oregon, UCLA drew first blood on an RBI single from third baseman Roman Martin, scoring left fielder Dean West, who reached on a single earlier in the inning. 

The Ducks continued to struggle offensively against Bruins starter Landon Stump until the third inning, when they put two runners on with two outs, with Ryan Cooney reaching on a walk before Burke-Lee Mabeus hit a single through the right side of the infield. Oregon leveled the lead on an RBI single from Drew Smith, which prompted an early pitching change for UCLA with Ian May taking over on the bump.

The fourth got off to an unusual start with Maddox Molony and Gabe Miranda both reaching on errors; a passed ball strikeout and a sacrifice bunt. With bases loaded and no outs following a walk from Naulivou Lauaki Jr., Jack Brooks singled to center field, sending Molony home to retake the lead and bring on UCLA’s third pitcher of the game, Jack O’Connor.

A sacrifice fly from Cooney scored Miranda on the first pitch following the pitching change before Jaksa hit a three-run homer to deep center field on the next pitch to give Oregon a 6-1 lead heading into the bottom half of the fourth.

Gosztola continued to hold UCLA back after striking out the side in the fourth, adding on to his already-impressive performance following the lone run in the first inning. 

The Bruins made yet another pitching change in the fifth, this time bringing out one of the Big Ten’s top prospects, Angel Cervantes, who was selected 50th overall in last year’s MLB Draft by the Pittsburgh Pirates. The change proved fruitful, with no Ducks getting on base in the fifth.

After four scoreless innings from the Bruins, shortstop Roch Cholowsky sent a ball to deep left-center field for a solo home run to make it 6-2. The home run was the first hit allowed by Gosztola since the third inning, after retiring nine-straight batters up to that point. Oregon head coach Mark Wasikowski opted to bring on Luke Morgan into a relief spot after Gosztola induced a groundout.

Following a two-out single from right fielder Payton Brennan, center fielder Will Gasparino slashed a double down the left field line. A fielding error from Jaksa allowed Brennan to score, making it 6-3 heading into the seventh inning.

After a hitless top half of the seventh, Wasikowski opted for another relief pitcher, with Gabe Howard getting the nod out of the bullpen. Howard walked the first batter of the day with one out before West singled to right to put runners at the corners. After getting stuck in a jam, Howard was pulled in favor of Devin Bell, who almost immediately gave up an RBI single to Cholowsky. A double play stopped the bleeding heading into the eighth.

The Bruins tacked on another run in the eighth on a two-out RBI single from pinch hitter Aiden Espizona following two singles earlier in the inning. With a one-run lead, Tanner Bradley entered the game as Oregon’s fifth pitcher of the game and quickly hit second baseman Phoenix Call on the first pitch to load the bases. 

The Ducks’ hopes of a win were crushed when a meatball pitch down the middle was demolished by West for a grand slam to make it 9-6 heading into the ninth. The go-ahead home run plus a ninth-inning Jaksa flyout, Mabeus groundout, and Smith strikeout not only handed the Ducks a series loss against the Bruins but also hindered their chances at hosting a regional heading into the postseason.

The Ducks head back to Eugene for their final home series of the regular season against No. 18 USC on May 14 at 7:05 p.m. PT at PK Park. The series is a must-win for Oregon, which currently sits third in the Big Ten behind No. 25 Nebraska.