Oregon’s baseball team continued its surprising early-season run Sunday by topping No. 17 Vanderbilt 7-6 in Nashville to earn a series sweep of the Commodores.
The victory upped the Ducks’ winning streak to seven games, which included three road wins at Hawaii and a victory over Belmont before the Vanderbilt series. @@http://www.goducks.com/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=500&SPID=11401&SPSID=94835@@
Sunday’s win was the tightest of their three over Vanderbilt. The Ducks (7-1) took an early 3-0 lead on a two-RBI double by Ryon Healy in the first and a solo homer by Scott Heineman in the second, but the Commodores methodically chipped away at Oregon starter Brando Tessar. @@http://www.goducks.com/downloads2/447916.htm?ATCLID=205387463&SPSID=94831&SPID=11401&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500@@
Vanderbilt scored two runs in the second, two in the fourth, and one in the fifth to take a 5-3 lead. @@http://www.goducks.com/downloads2/447916.htm?ATCLID=205387463&SPSID=94831&SPID=11401&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500@@
Oregon responded with four runs in the sixth. Brett Thomas scored on a wild pitch to trim the deficit to one run, Aaron Payne notched an RBI single to tie the game and Aaron Jones hit a two-RBI double to give Oregon the lead.
Tessar, who earned his team-leading second victory of the season, was removed from the game after allowing five runs (two earned) in five innings, and relievers Tommy Thorpe and Jimmy Sherfy combined to limit the Commodores to one run over the game’s final four innings, although it wasn’t easy: Sherfy pitched the final 2.2 innings to notch the save, but had to work around five walks and a hit by pitch in the process. @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPID=11401&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=205387463@@
Although it was shaky at times in Sunday’s victory, Oregon’s pitching keyed the team’s Friday and Saturday wins.
On Friday, Alex Keudell and Sherfy combined to limit Vanderbilt to five hits in a 4-2 Duck win. Meanwhile, the Ducks’ offense scored single runs in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh innings to help Keudell earn his first victory of the year. @@http://www.goducks.com/downloads2/447643.htm?ATCLID=205386142&SPSID=94831&SPID=11401&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500@@  @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPID=11401&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=205386142@@
In Saturday’s 7-2 win, freshman Jake Reed picked up his first collegiate win by tossing six innings and allowing only two runs and three hits. Oregon’s offense mustered just five hits, but scored four runs in the fourth inning to take a commanding lead, and relievers Thorpe and Joey Housey pitched three scoreless innings to close the game. @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPID=11401&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=205386673@@
Oregon will return to play at 6 p.m. Tuesday when it hosts the University of Portland in the 2012 home opener.