Rutgers Baseball Falls to No. 9 Oregon in Close Series Finale
Eugene, Ore. – In a nail-biting conclusion to their series against No. 9 Oregon, Rutgers baseball suffered a 4-2 defeat at PK Park on Sunday. Despite a commendable effort that saw them suppress the Ducks’ powerful offense, the Scarlet Knights (10-14, 2-4) struggled to convert on scoring opportunities throughout the game.
The contest began with a solid performance from Rutgers pitcher Jack Kirchner, who delivered a clean first inning. However, in the second, Oregon capitalized on two walks to load the bases. Chase Meggers then hit a key double, driving in two runs to give the Ducks a 2-0 advantage. Rutgers responded in the fourth inning, narrowing the gap to 2-1 after JD Jones hit a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded.
Oregon answered back in the fifth with an RBI groundout, extending their lead to 3-1. Rutgers’ Dillon Ryan, entering with bases loaded and no outs, demonstrated impressive poise, limiting damage by throwing three scoreless innings with three strikeouts.
In the eighth inning, Rutgers made another push, loading the bases again. RJ Johnson Jr. managed a sacrifice fly to bring the score to 3-2. Unfortunately, a groundout ended the inning without further scoring, and Oregon added a final run in the bottom half to secure the 4-2 win.
Noteworthy for the Scarlet Knights was Pablo Santos, who notched his sixth multi-hit game of the season. Additionally, Rutgers’ defense remained strong, achieving 12 consecutive error-free games, marking a Big Ten-leading fielding percentage of .984.
Rutgers will look to bounce back on Wednesday against Princeton at 3 p.m., followed by a three-game series against Washington at Bainton Field.
Note: The image is for illustrative purposes only and is not the original image associated with the presented article. Due to copyright reasons, we are unable to use the original images. However, you can still enjoy the accurate and up-to-date content and information provided.
