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Tanner Smith leads Oregon to four-game sweep of Northwestern State

Jarrid Denneyby:Jarrid Denney•03/26/23•

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Chris Pietsch/The Register-Guard / USA TODAY NETWORK

The Oregon baseball program badly needed a big weekend to get back on track after some early-season struggles.

The Ducks got exactly that and picked up their fourth win in three days on Sunday to complete a series sweep of Northwestern State.

Oregon topped the demons, 5-0, at PK Park in Eugene to improve to 15-7 on the season. Throughout the four-game set, the Ducks outscored Northwestern State 46-11. Sunday’s victory came on the heels of a 16-1 win on Friday, as well as a 12-7 victory and 13-3 victory during Saturday’s doubleheader.

On Sunday, Tanner Smith led the Ducks with a 2-for-4, two-RBI performance. Smith launched a two-run homer in the sixth inning. In the process, he became the first player in program history to homer in five consecutive games.

On Friday, Smith broke Oregon’s program record for career hits when he picked up his 247th base knock.

Throughout the four-game series, Smith went 9-for-14 with 10 RBI, two doubles, and four homers.

“It was awesome,” Smith said. “It’s a great feeling to just break records. But I mean, I think it’s an even better feeling when we come away with a four-game sweep — seeing all the bats that came alive and stayed hot and seeing the pitching. The team clicked and it’s just so awesome.”

Additionally on Sunday, Drew Cowley went 2-for-4, and Dominic Hellman went 1-for-3 with a double.

Oregon freshman Matthew Grabmann got the starting nod and threw 4.0 scoreless inning while liming Northwestern State to one hit. Grabmann struck out four and walked just one.

Matt Dallas (3-0) got the win out of the bullpen for the Ducks and struck out two batters over 4.0 innings of work. Last week, Dallas was named the Pac-12 pitcher of the week after a lights-out showing against Washington State. On the season, Dallas owns a 1.39 ERA in 20 1/3 innings.

Josh Mollerus threw a perfect ninth inning for the Ducks and struck out a pair of Northwestern State batters.

The Ducks will now set their sights on a pivotal three-game series with Arizona (13-8, 3-5 Pac-12). The Wildcats feature one of the top power hitters in the nation in junior outfielder Chase Davis.

A preseason All-American selection, Davis hit .289 with 16 homers for Arizona last season.

The series opener is set for Friday at 6 p.m. PT. Junior right-hander Jace Stoffal is expected to get the starting nod for the Ducks.

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