Oregon wasn’t perfect in its series win over No. 1 UCLA last weekend, but made the Bruins pay every time they gave the Ducks an inch.
In game one of the Springfield regional, the Ducks looked like a completely different team.
Missed opportunities and unforced errors doomed the Ducks in their postseason opener as No. 3 seeded Oregon fell to No. 2 seed Iowa 3-1 Friday afternoon.
Four walks and six hit batters awarded the Hawkeyes two of their three runs, while Oregon’s offense sputtered against Iowa’s two-way star Tyler Peyton (7-4) as the Ducks showed a bit of postseason inexperience.
The Hawkeyes manufactured the first run of the game courtesy of two walks and a hit batter in the second inning, set up another run on a wild pitch in the third, then scored again after Oregon starter Cole Irvin (2-5) hit two consecutive batters in the fifth.
Irvin labored through his five inning outing, but did his best to keep his team within striking distance. The lefty threw 91 pitches, allowing three runs on four hits, two walks and two strikeouts.
Irvin’s opposite number Peyton out-dueled him convincingly with a 7.1 inning one-run outing. The Hawkeyes’ closer Nick Hibbing finished the game with a clean five-out save.
Oregon’s lone run came in the third inning when Austin Grebeck scored Mark Karaviotis on an RBI single to left. The Ducks found ways to get runners into scoring position throughout the contest, but were turned away every time by the stingy Iowa pitching staff.
The Ducks will face the loser of No. 1 seed Missouri State vs. No. 4 seed Canisius in the first elimination game Saturday afternoon. David Peterson is pegged to be Oregon’s starting pitcher.
Follow Josh Schlichter on Twitter @joshschlichter
Oregon baseball drops to losers’ bracket in Springfield regional
Josh Schlichter
May 28, 2015
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