Will Sanford empties the tank as Ducks advance to regional final 

It was the easiest “yes” Will Sanford had ever given.

Most thought Oregon’s starting pitcher was done by the time he came into the Ducks’ dugout with a 1-0 lead after the sixth inning. Sanford just fired off his 99th pitch of the evening, a breaking ball that caught Washington State’s Max Hartman swinging for his 13th strikeout of the night. Sanford threw both hands into the air and PK Park roared as if it was the final song of a concert.

They wanted an encore.

Sanford did, too.

“Going into the sixth, we were kind of like, ‘Empty the tank here,’ and it was a 1, 2, 3 inning,” Sanford said. “And then (pitching coach Matt Florer) came up to me and said, ‘You want to go back out?’ I said, ‘Of course I do.’”

Sanford went back out for the seventh. Strikeout No. 14 followed. And when Sanford finally met some friction, the Cougars quickly learned why the Ducks are the team to beat in the Eugene Regional.

In Oregon’s 4-0 win to advance to Sunday’s regional final, Oregon’s pitching staff allowed just two hits and struck out 19 batters. When Sanford’s tank ran dry, Tanner Bradley took the ball and struck out three of the five batters he faced. Then came Devin Bell, who slammed the door shut with two more strikeouts in the ninth.

It was an effort so dominant that, coupled with Washington State starter Luke Meyers’ strong performance, Saturday’s contest finished earlier than Oregon’s regional opener against Yale, which started an hour earlier Friday.

Both Meyers and Sanford brought no-hitters into the fifth inning. Neither left with theirs intact. But only Meyers took on damage.

After Brayden Jaksa struck out to lead off the fifth, Burke-Lee Mabeus ripped a double to right field, punctuating his arrival at second base with a vicious uppercut through the air.

Meyers rebounded to get Naulivou Lauaki Jr. swinging, bringing up Jax Gimenez, who had to wait a minute to step into the box as Washington State made a preemptive mound visit.

WSU’s bullpen stirred as Gimenez stepped in. Then Gimenez ambushed Meyers’ first pitch, roping it into right field for the run-scoring single.

“I really just wanted the moment,” Gimenez said. “Burke had a really good at-bat in front of me, he goes leadoff double. Maddox works a great walk, so really good at-bats in front of me in that position. Just really excited to uplift the team.”

The Ducks chased Meyers in the eighth. Then, more good at-bats opened the floodgates when Lauaki blasted an opposite-field three-run home run. In Oregon’s first two games of the regional, Lauaki has a pair of home runs and six RBIs — all in the eighth and ninth innings.

Oregon’s timely hitting and pitching gave the Ducks the first ticket to the regional final, where they’ll meet the winner of Sunday’s losers bracket final between Washington State and Oregon State. The Beavers, who fell to WSU 3-2 Friday, regrouped Saturday with a 9-2 thumping of Yale to remain alive.

“Happy to perform for the team and get the boys a win,” said Oregon State starting pitcher Eric Segura, who struck out a career-high 10 batters. “We’re going to continue to do that. It’s going to be a long weekend.”

It will be. Sunday will be Oregon’s third game of the weekend, its opponents’ fourth and, if the Beavers get their way, things could extend into Monday.

It’s a marathon, though after one of the best outings of his life, Sanford said the Ducks do have an X-factor.

“There is no tired when you get a crowd like that,” he said. “Pure adrenaline. It was great. I love it.”