Beavers outlast Washington in first round of Pac-12 tournament

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OMN Sports

The Oregon State Beavers defeated the seventh-seeded Washington Huskies 13-8 in the first round of the PAC 12 baseball tournament in Scottsdale, Arizona on Wednesday night.

In a matchup between two of the conference’s best-hitting teams, there certainly was no shortage of offense. The Beavers jumped out early by taking a 2-0 lead in the second inning and forcing Washington’s starter Jared Engman out of the game. However, the Huskies battled back and used a five-run fourth inning to take a 6-2 lead over the Beavers.

But it didn’t take the Beavers long to respond. After an RBI single from sophomore Justin Boyd cut the lead to three, junior Garrett Forrester came to the plate with two on and nobody out. On a full-count pitch, Forrester launched an opposite-field game-tying home run to ignite Beaver nation in Scottsdale. The Beavers plated one more run in the frame and took a 7-6 lead heading into the fifth.

The bats didn’t stop there, as Washington put up two runs in the top of the fifth to put the Huskies back on top by one.

In the home half of the inning, Oregon State continued its offensive onslaught. After junior Jacob Melton tied the game with a single, junior catcher Gavin Logan doubled to left-center, scoring both Melton and Forrester and giving the Beavers a two-run lead.

From that point on, no more lead changes took place. The Oregon State bullpen clamped down, and the Beavers added insurance runs in both the seventh and eighth innings. The final score was 13-8, with the Beavers out-hitting Washington 17-16.  Oregon State’s offense also drew eight walks.

Offensively, Oregon State certainly didn’t have a shortage of standouts. Junior Gavin Logan went three for four with a solo home run and drove in three runs. Junior Jake Dukart also went three for four. Pac 12 player of the year Jacob Melton went three for five, and Garrett Forrester went two for four with a three-run blast.

For the Washington Huskies, nine-hole hitter senior Josh Urps had a monster game, going four for five with two RBIs. Freshman outfielder AJ Guerrero went three for five, and junior McKay Barney went two for three with an RBI.

With the win, Oregon State heads to the winner’s bracket in the PAC 12 tournament.  Next up, the Beavers will face the winner of tonight’s matchup between sixth-seeded Cal and third-seeded UCLA. Oregon State’s matchup tomorrow will be game 8 of the tournament, and the time is yet to be determined.

 

 

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