Baseball Recap: Heimlich Hurls Gem As Ducks Choke In Civil War Opener 6-1

EUGENE, Oregon— With their postseason hopes hanging in the balance, the Oregon Ducks dropped their Civil War Series opener with the number one ranked Oregon State Beavers 6-1 Thursday at PK Park.

OSU (39-4, 22-3) benefited from a stellar pitching performance from starter Luke Heimlich (8-1), who struck out seven Ducks while only allowing one run on seven hits in his six innings of work. Reliever Brandon Eisert pitched three scoreless innings in relief to pick up the save, his third of the season. Meanwhile the pitching staff for Oregon (26-19, 9-13) couldn’t stop the hot-hitting Beavers; sophomore left handed starter Cole Stringer (4-2) and a trio of relievers gave up six runs on twelve hits, with the main damage coming courtesy of solo home runs from catcher Adley Rutschman and third baseman Michael Gretler, and a two-run bloop double off the bat of right fielder Jack Anderson:

The Ducks’ offense came up short again Thursday, managing only two extra base hits— both doubles— out of nine hits total. Oregon batters also struck out eleven times, while stranding eight baserunners in their eighth game of the season scoring only one run. Junior shortstop Kyle Kasser went 3-3 for the game with a double, but failed to score or drive in any runs.

With the win, Oregon State clinched at least a tie for the PAC-12 Conference title.

The two teams return to the diamond at PK Park again this evening for Game Two of their Civil War Series, with first pitch scheduled for 7:00 pm.