Ducks run through finish line

George Horton’s message to the Ducks was harsh and to the point.

Whether it was last year’s Pac-12 conference race, or Oregon’s Super Regional rubber game against Kent State that ended the 2012 season, or even last week’s failure to sweep at USC, the UO baseball team was in danger of earning an unwanted perception. Horton reminded the Ducks of that after they beat Arizona twice to open this weekend.

“We challenged them to finish,” Horton said.

Finish they did, the Ducks scoring in five straight innings Sunday to build a lead that withstood a late rally by the Wildcats. Oregon held on for a 7-6 victory to complete a sweep of the defending College World Series champions, and remained tied for the Pac-12 lead at 5-1 through two weeks of conference play.

The 13th-ranked Ducks (18-6) also won the first two games against the Trojans a week earlier, before managing just five hits in the finale, not nearly enough to support a five-run outing by starter Cole Irvin. Given another chance to close out a series Sunday, Irvin (4-1) pitched into the sixth inning and allowed two earned runs, while eight of nine hitters either scored or drove in a run.

“I think all weekend we brought a better effort,” Irvin said. “Going into L.A., USC, we were excited to get some sun, some In-N-Out and stuff. Overall we just didn’t finish Sunday. But today and the whole weekend we played Duck baseball, played how we normally should play, and it made me excited for the rest of the road.”

The potential exists for the sweep of Arizona to be a turning point in the season. The Ducks have had the Pac-12’s best defense all spring, and have pitched consistently well — particularly out of the bullpen — but hadn’t been explosive offensively against top-tier talent. But after hanging on to win 2-1 on Friday, the Ducks used a three-run Ryon Healy homer to win comfortably Saturday, then got the leadoff man on each of the first five innings Sunday and scored in five straight frames beginning with the second.

Backup catcher Josh Graham, starting for the first time in nearly two weeks, drove in a run in three separate plate appearances, and Healy added a two-run single in the fourth inning. The Ducks led 7-3 entering the ninth, enough cushion to survive a rare shaky performance from the late-inning tandem of lefty Garrett Cleavinger and closer Jimmie Sherfy.

“It looks like guys are getting back into the character that we saw in January, and the type of pressure we can keep on our opponents without just using the bunting game,” Horton said.

“It was definitely fun to be a part of, and I think that will come to be more a part of the repertoire for us,” Healy added.

The game-winning run was a sacrifice fly by Graham after Tyler Baumgartner’s one-out triple in the sixth. More common, though, were runs brought home with deft hitting touch — and a little luck.