The fourth-ranked Oregon club baseball team lost a doubleheader to Lane Community College last Thursday but swept Seattle University in a three-game series during the weekend.
Those five games bring Oregon’s overall record to 17-3, which has landed the team in second place in the Pacific Mountain Conference behind Western Washington University.
Starting pitcher David Schott was roughed up in the early innings as the Ducks lost 9-1 in the first game against Lane.
“The score didn’t really tell how that game went,” co-coordinator Nick Hall said. “They hit a three-run home run on a low-outside curveball that the guy just pulled it over the left-field fence. And there were a couple of errors in the first inning they got four runs on.”
In the second game, pitcher Bryan Hansen pitched seven scoreless innings, allowing only one runner to third base before Jay Tlougan relieved him in extra innings. Tlougan surrendered one run, unearned because of third baseman Matt Zabriskie’s throwing error, as the Ducks lost 1-0.
Hall attributes Oregon’s loss to Lane’s pitchers consistently hitting their spots and clutch hitting compared to the Ducks’ offense, which managed one run during the two games.
Co-coordinator Jonathan Jwayad said Lane plays a type of baseball that Oregon isn’t used to, as wooden bats, sacrifice bunts and precise pitching keep the scores close.
“In comparison with their league and our league, the scores are closer. It’s not as inflated,” Jwayad said. “It’s a wood bat league and the little things like bunts are really important to execute and it’s things they have to do because that league is almost small-ball.”
Jwayad noted that Lane won its league in 2004, which includes many Oregon and Washington community colleges.
“I feel it’s really important to play those teams,” Jwayad said. “Sometimes you don’t get the challenges in our league that we want. Our league’s pretty lopsided.”
The unbalance is indicated by the Ducks’ offensive production in its games against Seattle with the games resulting in scores of 16-1, 13-1 and 9-4, respectively.
“The competition is definitely not as good as Lane,” Hall said referring to the PMC.
Tlougan threw a five-inning complete game, lowering his ERA to 0.59 in 30 2/3 innings pitched.
“Everything moves off his hand, nothing is straight,” Jwayad said. “It was another, almost expected, solid outing. He does that every time he comes out. We know that he’s not going to let more than one run score.”
Hall and Jwayad combined to throw five innings in the second game. Phil Neiman and Greg Wells pitched in the final game.
Bryan Hansen went 2 for 3 in third game against Seattle hitting two home runs, one of which traveled well over an estimated 400 feet.
Oregon will play a four-game series against Evergreen State this weekend in Olympia, Wash.
“I think we’re going to go into these games and take them serious,” Jwayad said. “It’s really important for us to take these one game at a time, do the small things, run the bases correct, go through the series without making one baserunning error and that’s what’s going to prepare us for the playoffs.”