Baseball Recap: Ducks Break Out The Brooms, Sweep Anteaters 7-2

EUGENE, Oregon— Junior catcher Tim Susnara homered for the second consecutive day, while the pitching staff held the Anteaters at bay as the Ducks took game three of their clash with UC Irvine 7-2 Sunday to sweep the series.

Things didn’t start off so well for Oregon, as they fell behind 2-0 before even coming to the plate in the first. A pair of singles, a hit batter, and the first error of the season by junior shortstop Kyle Kasser gave the Anteaters the early advantage, but solid pitching by the Ducks held UC Irvine (12-16) scoreless the rest of the way. Sophomore right hander Isaiah Carranza (2-0) got the start Sunday and acquitted himself well, giving up only the aforementioned two runs (both unearned) on seven hits, while striking out three and walking one in his six innings of work. A trio of relievers (righties freshman James Acuna, senior Cooper Stiles, junior Brac Warren) each pitched a hitless inning to close things out for Oregon (21-8).

The Ducks offense Sunday featured a balanced attack, with six different players driving in runs on the day, led by Susnara, whose inside-the-park-home run, his third round-tripper of the season, started off the scoring for Oregon in the second. The Ducks would go on to post single runs in the fourth courtesy of an RBI single by freshman first baseman Matthew Dyer; in the fifth via an RBI single by Kasser, atoning for his earlier error; and in the sixth inning by way of an RBI fielder’s choice from junior left fielder Taylor Travess, before plating a trio of runs in the eighth. UC Irvine starter Chris Vargas (0-2) was ineffective, giving up three runs on five hits while striking out two and walking one in his four-and-a-third innings. The Anteater bullpen struggled as well, culminating in the eighth when UC Irvine reliever Calvin Faucher walked three straight Ducks, leading to the final runs for Oregon.

The Ducks welcome the University of Portland to town on Tuesday, the second of three non-conference tilts with the Pilots this season. First pitch from PK Park is scheduled for 6:00 pm.