GOLETA, Calif. — Carter Garate and RJ Gordon got things started. Logan Mercado and Bryce Boettcher finished it off. The Oregon baseball team got a quality start and an elite bullpen performance, played errorless defense and saw every member of the lineup reach base as the Ducks opened their NCAA Regional on Friday with a 5-4 win over San Diego in 11 innings. The Ducks (38-18) moved on in the double-elimination regional to a matchup Saturday at 7 p.m. against No. 18 UC Santa Barbara. Oregon's fourth consecutive regional appearance saw the Ducks jump out to a 4-1 lead by the seventh-inning stretch, behind three RBIs from Garate and a quality start from Gordon. The Toreros tied it with a three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh, but Mercado came on to pitch four scoreless innings of relief and Boettcher — the Eugene native and two-sport UO star — hit a solo homer in the top of the 11th for the game-winning run. "Both sides were really gritty, really tough," UO coach Mark Wasikowski said. "And I was really proud of the team's effort to be able to come out on top."
When Boettcher walked to the plate to lead off the 11th, he was the only UO position player who had yet to reach base in the game. That changed quickly, as Boettcher pulled the second pitch he saw high and deep over the left-field fence.
"That one felt pretty good," said Boettcher, also a linebacker for the Oregon football team. "It's pretty much like when you clear someone off his feet in football — you don't feel anything in that moment either."
Oregon beats San Diego in extras to start NCAA Tournament run ??
— Pac-12 Conference (@pac12) May 31, 2024Highlights ?? pic.twitter.com/kS8jX6Y1xR
How It Happened: After allowing a single and a walk with two out in the first, Gordon settled in on the mound for the Ducks, his confidence growing with each passing inning. He faced one over the minimum over the next three frames, giving Oregon's offense time to adjust to San Diego starter Josh Randall — a transfer from Arizona. Garate got things started, leading off the fifth with a home run. It was a welcome sight after the Ducks didn't homer in their two losses at the Pac-12 Tournament the previous week, and it was the first of three straight at-bats in which Garate drove in a run. "It just goes back to preparation and going back to what you know," Garate said. "You want to put it together and compete as much as possible. You know your team's behind you, and you know you can do whatever you want when your team's behind you." San Diego answered with a run off Gordon in the bottom of the fifth, when three straight batters reached with two outs. But Gordon again settled in, and he faced the minimum over the next two innings. Oregon took the lead again in the sixth. Bennett Thompson singled, Anson Aroz was hit by a pitch and Drew Smith reached on an error while trying to move up both runners with a bunt. Maddox Molony made it 2-1 with a fielder's choice that scored Thompson and left runners at the corners, and Garate followed with another bunt that brought Aroz in from third. Garate made it three straight at-bats with an RBI in the eight, doubling with two outs to score Smith for a 4-1 lead. The UO coaching staff stuck with Gordon to start the bottom of the eighth, but pulled him after a walk and a single to open the inning. That brought San Diego star Jakob Christian to the plate; the Ducks responded with a highly regarded draft prospect of their own, reliever Brock Moore, and Christian tied the game with his 24th homer of the season. "Credit to their kid, the Christian kid — he looks like a first-round pick to me and he got the better of a 99-mile-an-hour fastball," Wasikowski said. "If you can't appreciate that, big on big — it was a lot of fun; it wasn't a lot of fun to see the ball sail out of the park (but) we got the matchup we wanted in that spot, felt comfortable with it, and it just didn't work out for us in that spot." After the next hitter saw two balls from Moore, the Ducks went back to the bullpen and summoned Mercado, who walked that hitter and the next — still with none out. But he got a fly ball followed by a double play to end the inning, before later stranding runners in scoring position in both the ninth and 11th innings. "We've been in big spots before; this is my fourth regional here at the University of Oregon," said Mercado, who also had a four-inning relief appearance to earn a save in the Ducks' win over Xavier to clinch their regional at Vanderbilt the year before. "So I think just the biggest thing late in the game was experience. We've been in those big spots before. It was just exciting. I just wanted to give energy to my dugout, give energy back to my offense." The Ducks squandered two-out singles by Jacob Walsh in the ninth and Molony in the 10th. But Boettcher eventually took the baton from Mercado in the 11th and blasted his 12th homer of the season, for a 5-4 lead that Mercado made hold up despite allowing a double followed by a sacrifice bunt to lead off the bottom of the inning. Up Next: The Ducks face UC Santa Barbara on Saturday (7 p.m., ESPN+).
