Clutch performances propel Oregon baseball, thrill capacity crowd with 2-0 start

In the ninth inning of a 1-0 ball game with two on and two out, 6-5, 265 freshman slugger Naulivou Lauaki Jr. crushed a 90 mph pitch to the Pepsi sign in centerfield to give Oregon a 4-0 lead in the winner's bracket game of the Eugene Regional over Washington State.

The blast helped give the Ducks a 2-0 record in the double elimination tournament, igniting a raucous celebration in PK Park by 4,278 fans, the sixth-largest crowd in Oregon baseball history.

It was Lauaki's 14th home run of the season and second in two nights. He hit one against UCLA in the Big Ten Championship game, and another against Washington in the quarterfinals, two singles against Nebraska in the 8-0 semifinal win. In all he's mashed14 circuit clouts in just 122 at-bats, a frightful pace.

Lauaki has a Barry Bonds/Reggie Jackson flair for the dramatic, an effusive, charismatic star who plays baseball with a football mentality. He's hit some of the longest home runs in the country this season, including a 496-foot moon shot against Illinois in April.

He crushed another one to dead away center in the 4-3 win over USC in the final series of the regular season. That one propelled the Ducks to the No. 3-seed in the Big Ten Tourney.

Ahead of the season series with UCLA earlier this month he said, "Coach W preaches it's just us versus the game. It's they could be wearing purple, pink, whatever, but it's just us versus the game. You don't change anything and then take it game by game."

Ducks play great team baseball to seize series lead

Lauaki wasn't Oregon's only hero Saturday night. Starting pitcher Will Sanford pitched 6.1 scoreless innings, allowed just one hit and struck out 14. In the 5th Jax Gimenez got the Ducks a 1-0 lead with a two-out single, scoring Burke Lee-Mabeus. Devin Bell slammed the door in the bottom of the ninth with a scoreless finish, striking out two.

In all Sanford, Tanner Bradley and Bell fanned 19 batters, one off the school record of 20, set by David Peterson against Arizona State in 2017, a complete-game shutout.

Sanford, the Ducks ace, ran his season record to 9-2. He's struck out 119 in 80.2 innings.

Midweek the Oregon athletic department made the decision to set aside 1500 seats for students. The resulting crowd was raucous, partisan, adding to the playoff intensity. Pressure is a privilege, and these Ducks are loaded with players who thrive in that atmosphere.

Lauaki, for one, has that "straw that stirs the drink" kind of magnetism. The crowd could feel it.

On Sunday they'll play the winner of the loser's bracket game between Oregon State and the Cougars. The Beavers eliminated Yale Saturday night. With a 2-0 start, Oregon has to win either a 6 p.m. PT game or the "if necessary" game that would follow. Cal Scolari is the likely starter.

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