SCOTTSDALE, AZ – Despite being swept by Oregon last weekend, Arizona Baseball (36-21, 16-14) beat Oregon in a rematch to advance in the Pac-12 Tournament.
Arizona Baseball had a rough weekend last weekend, falling to Oregon in all three games to close out the Pac-12 regular season. However, on Wednesday afternoon, the Wildcats put that all in the past as they took on the Ducks in the first round of the Pac-12 Tournament.
Turning to Dawson Netz who got the start on the bump for the Wildcats, Arizona would use a committee of pitchers in this one. And collectively it was a team effort as the Wildcats held the Ducks to 13 hits and six runs while striking out three batters.
Luckily, it was the offense that came up big today! Despite the inconsistencies on the mound for the Cats, Arizona brought out the big bats in a big way, plating eight runs on 11 hits.
Daniel Susac would lead the way, batting 3-4 from the plate with three RBIs and a game-high two home runs. Beyond that, Chase Davis and Garen Caufield were big for the Cats, going a combined 4-7 from the dish with four RBIs.
Despite falling behind later in the game, Arizona Baseball was able to rally late, coming away with the big 8-6 win!
Arizona would get the action going early in this one Garen Caufield homered in the second inning to plate two runs, giving the Wildcats an early 2-0 lead.
Continuing their early offensive barrage, Susac would jump in on the action in the very next inning! Up to bat facing a 3-1 pitch, Daniel sent one over the left field wall to make it 3-0, Arizona!
Unfortunately, that lead wouldn’t last for long as the Ducks’ bats would come alive. Scoring two runs in the third, Oregon would strike again in the sixth inning when they blasted a three-run home run down the right field line to make it 5-4 in favor of the Ducks.
Luckily for us, the Wildcats wouldn’t go away in this one as they regained the lead in the seventh inning thanks to some timely hitting from Tanner O’Tremba and Chase Davis.
Leading 6-5, Arizona would extend their lead in the ninth inning when Susac homered again (his second of the game), this time a two-run shot that carried out to left field, making it 8-5, Arizona.
Oregon would get a run back in the ninth, but luckily, the Wildcats were able to shut the door on the Ducks, securing the 8-6 win!
Arizona’s Eric Orloff picked up the win to improve to 2-2 on the year, meanwhile, Trevor Long picked up his sixth save of the season!
Where does Arizona Baseball go from here?
With the win, Arizona improves to 36-21 (16-14) on the year and advances to the second round of the Pac-12 Tournament where they will take on Stanford. First pitch is set for 4:45 P.M. MST.