Not much went right for the Oregon Ducks on Saturday night. Missed opportunities, both on the mound and at the plate, plagued the oregon-ducks-baseball-game-thread-super-regional-game-2/">Ducks in a 11-3 loss to the Texas Longhorns to kick off the Austin Super Regional.
Now, the Ducks have their backs against the wall.
“I thought it was a really sloppy game on probably both sides,” Oregon coach Mark Wasikowski said after the game. “I’m disappointed in the fact that that’s what we brought to the Austin Super Regional in the first game. I think we’re a whole lot better than what we showed tonight, but what we showed tonight was what we all saw, and that wasn’t reflective, in my opinion, of how we got this far.”
Oregon didn’t have trouble getting on base, outhitting Texas with nine hits, but they issued 11 free passes to the Longhorns‘ offense. Additionally, the Ducks stranded 17 baserunners and failed to find the timely base knock.
“I thought we kind of shot ourselves in the foot tonight,” Wasikowski said. “And that’s why we came out on the wrong side of the scoreboard.”
The Ducks went 0-for-14 with runners in scoring position and left runners on base in every inning. Texas ace Dylan Volantis presented a daunting task for the Oregon offense, but he was uncomfortable at times because of how the Ducks hit him early.
Jax Gimenez, who moved up to the leadoff spot, had two hits and a walk to set the table. However, two of Oregon’s biggest bats, Angel Laya and Ryan Cooney, went silent and combined for five strikeouts.
“We didn’t execute well enough with runners in scoring position,” Gimenez said. “They had a competitor on the mound, and we didn’t win. It was clean in moments tonight, but we know we can be better and we’re going to have to get to another level if we want to get to where we want to get to.”
Volantis allowed eight hits and two runs in 5 ⅓ innings, while picking up 10 strikeouts. The Ducks were way out in front on the southpaw’s offspeed pitches. Wasikowski watched as the Ducks continued to swing through the breaking balls that ended up in the turf. While Volantis got into sticky situations with runners on the bases, he maneuvered out of the jam several times, which is something the Ducks couldn’t replicate on the mound.
“He’s got one of the best breaking balls in the country,” Wasikowski said of Volantis. “I didn’t think he was sharp tonight, compared to a lot of the other outings that we saw, and yet he gutted it out. He showed the makeup that a true warrior shows when he needed to in the big spots.”
The bottom of the order did a fairly good job of setting the top of the lineup up for success. Maddox Molony hit a pair of doubles, and Naulivou Lauaki Jr. hit one as well. The problem was Oregon’s veterans in the core of the lineup had a tough night. It could just be an off night against a great pitcher, but the Ducks have history in this spot.
Leading up to the team’s trip to Austin, several veteran Ducks discussed what they learned from a humbling loss in the Super Regionals against Texas A&M in 2024. The main lesson was how to deal with a rowdy environment. Oregon has endured raucous conditions in Omaha against Nebraska and even last weekend at PK Park.
Molony was one of those Ducks who reflected on the losses in College Station and felt he had matured enough to handle the moment. However, the Ducks still have some work to do to prove it on the field.
“We did a good job of setting the table, but the moment got too big a couple times.” We need a better job of staying within ourselves and trusting in our abilities.”
Oregon will roll with ace Will Sanford on Sunday night. The Ducks’ top starter recorded a career-high 14 strikeouts in his last outing in the Eugene Regional. While asking for a similar performance against a feisty Texas lineup might be a stretch, the Ducks will need Sanford’s energy and length to rejuvenate the dugout to keep the season alive.
“We’re 0-1, and it’s the first team to win two,” Wasikowski said. “It’s like a regular conference weekend where you have to win two of three. Nothing got won tonight, and nothing got resolved tonight in terms of who goes to Omaha.”
Hitting in critical spots and limiting free passes will be the focus on Sunday night. At the end of the day, that’s the fundamental way to win baseball games. The Ducks know that. So there is only one thing left to do.
“Excited to get after it tomorrow,” Gimenez said. “Now it’s time to go win a series.”
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This article originally appeared on Ducks Wire: Oregon looking to correct missed opportunities vs. Texas
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