Oregon’s last game at PK Park this season was expected to be May 14. The Ducks entered senior day amid a losing streak that was putting their postseason hopes in jeopardy and if they were fortunate, going on the road for the NCAA tournament was guaranteed.
Oregon (40-20) has redefined its season since, winning nine straight games to reach its first super regional since 2012 and gets to play host to Oral Roberts (49-11) for a best-of-three series before a sold out ballpark starting tonight (5 p.m., ESPNU).
“The fan interest in the community, what that means for us, it’s awesome,” Oregon coach Mark Wasikowski said. “To see that the local community really wants this and is really rallying around the team at a time where it’s a really special time.”
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For most of Oregon’s roster, this weekend is the culmination of a process and vision they had to buy into and that started long before they got to UO.
Former athletic director Pat Kilkenny chose to reinstate the baseball program in 2007, with the Ducks returning to the field in 2009 after a 28-year absence. Few are as well versed in the process it’s taken for Oregon to get back to this point than Wasikowski, who was an assistant at UO from 2012-16 before returning as head coach in 2020.
“I think first off it’s hard; I think that’s one thing that is says,” Wasikowski said. “It’s not easy to get to Omaha. It’s not easy to get to super regionals. It’s not easy to get to the regionals. To be able to do that now on a consistent basis; we’ve only been here for three (full) years and we’ve been able to get to postseason play now three years in a row and this will be a super regional in year three really, it’s good. We’re in the right direction. We’re just trying to get prepared for the weekend and put out best product out there for a packed house.”
The older players are aware of the historic nature of the program’s return to the super regional and to be two wins away from its first College World Series appearance since 1954.
“I was thinking about it the other day and it’s awesome,” shortstop Drew Cowley said. “As a college baseball player this is something you always dream about, getting the opportunity to go to Omaha. I think this group definitely is capable of going to Omaha and winning a national championship. It’ll be exciting to see what the rest of these few weeks have. …“It’s surreal. We talk about it and then it coming into fruition, it’s a great feeling and we’re super excited.”
The lone remaining player who played under former coach George Horton is left fielder Tanner Smith, who adds to his list of career records on a daily basis. Smith, Cowley and fellow senior Gavin Grant are pillars to a team that is surging offensively and relying on a nine-man pitching rotation including five freshmen, who have also raised their play over the last three weeks.
They all get another chance to play at home and end the season at PK Park with historic wins and end Oregon’s current four-game losing streak at home dating back to April 30.
“We all got a little bit of a sour taste in our mouth after our last home series against Washington,” pitcher Grayson Grinsell said. “We’re excited to have everyone come out to PK and have a good weekend.”
One way or another history will be made this weekend as Oregon hasn’t made it to Omaha in the program’s modern era and Oral Roberts hasn’t been to the CWS since 1978.
