On Friday, #8 Stanford baseball fell to Oregon 4-0 on the road in Eugene. Oregon junior right-handed pitcher Jace Stoffal (5-2) picked up the win on the mound for the Ducks in a starting role, pitching a complete game. Stanford senior left-handed pitcher Quinn Mathews (4-3) was given the loss on the mound for the Cardinal in a starting role, pitching a full game for the Cardinal. Oregon improves to 23-9 overall and 8-5 in the Pac-12 while Stanford falls to 22-9 overall and 10-3 in the Pac-12.
BOX SCORE: Stanford at Oregon-Friday, April 14th
The 1st inning was pretty quiet as the only player to get on base for either team was Stanford center fielder Eddie Park, who hit a leadoff single to center field.
The 2nd inning would be even quieter as neither team got a runner on base. The 3rd inning got off to as similar start as Stanford once again failed to get a guy on base.
However, in the bottom of the 3rd, Oregon made things a bit interesting. With two outs, Gavin Grant doubled through the left side after which Rikuu Nishida singled through the right side, causing Grant to come home where he was tagged out. Still a 0-0 game at the end of the 3rd.
The top of the 4th inning was quiet again as Carter Graham, Tommy Troy, and Braden Montgomery once again failed to get on base for the Cardinal. Stanford’s offense was not in a good flow at all.
As for the bottom of the 4th, Oregon finally scored. Colby Shade got the party started with a solo home run to left field after which Drew Cowley got hit by a pitch. With two outs and Cowley still on base, Jacob Walsh hit a homer to right field to bring home Cowley. Oregon would not score the rest of the inning, making it a 3-0 lead for the Ducks at the end of the 4th.
In the top of the 5th inning, Stanford threatened to score, but came up short. Drew Bowser hit a single to right field with one out after which Alberto Rios was walked. Unfortunately for the Cardinal, Cole Hinkelman and Owen Cobb both flied out to right field to end the top of the inning, leaving Bowser and Rios stranded. As for the bottom of the 5th, Mathews struck out three straight Oregon batters. He was dialed in after a rough 4th inning.
In the top of the 6th, Stanford’s bats continued to be cold as Park, Graham, and Troy all failed to get on base. It just wasn’t the Cardinal’s night offensively. In the bottom of the 6th, Cowley hit a solo home run to center field with one out, making it a 4-0 lead for the Ducks. With two outs, Tanner Smith doubled down the left field line, but Walsh struck out swinging to end the inning.
From there, Oregon would go on to win 4-0. In the top of the 9th inning, Park singled up the middle with no outs and was able to steal second base, but it ended up not mattering as Montgomery struck out swinging for the third and final out. Stanford’s offense could not handle the pitching of Stoffal and once again, Mathews had a solid night turn into a loss because he didn’t get enough run support. It’s been that kind of year for Mathews so far.
At this point, all Stanford can do is shake this one off and get ready for Saturday’s game. If they can even up this series on Saturday, that will take a lot of pressure off of them for Sunday.
On that note, Saturday’s game will be at 2:05 PM PT on Oregon Live Stream and KZSU radio.
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