EUGENE, Ore. — UC Santa Barbara Baseball's Matt Ager continued to perplex Oregon hitters on Friday night, striking out eight Ducks over 6 1/3 innings and earning the win as the No. 24 Gauchos defeated Oregon, 6-1, in the first game of their three-game series. In three career appearances at PK Park, Ager has struck out 19 batters while allowing just six hits and zero earned runs. Brendan Durfee continued his strong start to life in Division I baseball, going 2-for-2 at the plate with three walks, a double and an RBI.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Gauchos, who came into the night riding a five-game win streak at PK Park, took no time getting comfortable in this weekend's venue, putting up three runs in the opening inning. Santa Barbara led off the game with three straight hits, getting singles from Reiss Calvin and Zander Darby before Durfee laced a double into left, scoring Calvin. Darby showed off his wheels for run number two, tagging up on a Jessada Brown sacrifice fly that was on the shallower side of center field. With two outs, Nick Oakley proved that good things can happen when you put the ball in play, especially with the cold drizzle coming down on Friday. The Gauchos' second baseman reached safely on an error by his Oregon counterpart, and with Durfee running all the way, he forced a throw home which also sailed wide, giving Santa Barbara their third run and Oakley second base.
 
The most traffic Ager had to navigate around actually came in the bottom of the first, but he got out of the inning unscathed thanks to some highlight-reel defense. After surrendering back-to-back two-out hits, a third single rolled into right field, but Jonah Sebring scooped it and rocketed a throw home, beating the runner in plenty of time for Durfee to catch and apply the tag. Ager would only allow one more hit on the night.

The Gauchos had a chance to pile on more runs in the top of the third, loading the bases with one out, but their aggression on the basepaths cost them a little. Oakley's sacrifice fly did score Durfee, but Brown was cut down trying to tag from first to second.
 
Still, Santa Barbara's four-run lead looked pretty insurmountable with how Ager was working on the mound. The Gauchos' ace set the Ducks down in order in both the third and fourth innings, striking out a pair in each frame. He did surrender a hit in the fifth, and that runner would come around to score, though that was not entirely Ager's fault. In fact, the big righty bailed out Sebring when the right fielder's attempt to cut down the Duck tagging from second to third sailed high, Ager backing up the play and preventing the ball from ending up in the dugout. Unfortunately, as the rain had picked up, Durfee's attempt to pick that runner off of third went wrong and skipped into left field, allowing the lone Oregon run of the evening.
 
Santa Barbara did get that run back in the top of the sixth thanks to some good situational baseball after Oakley led off the frame with an infield single. LeTrey McCollum laid down a sacrifice bunt to move him over, then Corey Nunez delivered a two-out single into right center to bring Oakley home and make it 5-1 Gauchos.

Ager went one-two-three through the Ducks in the bottom of the sixth, then exited the game after striking out the first batter he faced in the seventh. Cole Tryba relieved him, striking out the first two Ducks he faced to complete the inning. Tryba finished the game on the mound, working a perfect eighth inning with two more K's and handling some trouble in the ninth.
 
It helped that the offense had picked up another insurance run in the top of the final inning; Darby reached on a single then came around on a failed pick-off attempt plus two wild pitches.
 
Tryba did face a bases-loaded, one-out jam in the bottom of the ninth, but a strikeout and groundout got him out of it.
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Friday was Matt Ager's third pitching appearance at PK Park. In his career facing the Ducks there, Ager has a 2-0 record in 14 2/3 innings pitched, allowing just one unearned run on six hits and six walks while striking out 19.
• Freshman Cole Tryba continued his streak as the only pitcher to face every opponent the Gauchos have played this season by appearing in Friday night's contest. Over 6 2/3 innings across four games, he is still yet to allow a run.
• Friday night's game was the second this season in which Santa Barbara did not hit a home run. The Gauchos currently have a better record when not hitting a home run (2-0) than when they hit exactly one (0-3).
• Brendan Durfee and Zander Darby both extended their hitting streaks on Friday, continuing their runs of hitting against every Gaucho opponent this season. Durfee's streak is now 16 consecutive games with a hit while Darby's is 17 straight reaching base safely, both dating back to 2023.

UP NEXT
Santa Barbara will look to secure the series win on Saturday, March 2 at 2:05 p.m. from PK Park in Eugene. The game will be live on pac-12.com, with an audio broadcast and live stats available through ucsbgauchos.com. An all-lefty pitching matchup is expected, with Mike Gutierrez scheduled to start for the Gauchos and Grayson Grinsell set to take the mound for the Ducks.