The Beavers improbable run through the losers’ bracket ended with a win and a trip to the super regionals.
Friday night’s flop is sooooooo three days ago.
The Oregon State baseball team defeated the USC Trojans 9-0 Monday afternoon at Goss Stadium, completing its improbable and impressive run through the losers’ bracket of the Corvallis Regional by advancing to the super regionals.
The Beavers will host the Florida State Seminoles later this week in a best-of-three series with a trip to the College World Series on the line.
(For a full recap from the game, visit here)
After bashing its way to a pair of blowout victories Sunday to force a winner-take-all matchup Monday, the Beavers used a mix of overpowering pitching and prodigious hitting to keep their season alive.
James DeCremer pitched five dominant innings in his second career start, Eric Segura added three solid innings out of the bullpen, and the Beavers’ offense scored in five of its eight innings as OSU dismissed its old Pac-12 Conference foes.
DeCremer (3-0) was both electric and clutch, striking out six and allowing just two hits and two walks in the longest outing of his career. After playing four games in three days — including a double-header on Sunday — the Beavers needed quality innings out of their starter and the 6-foot-2 redshirt freshman delivered.
Segura also sparkled, distancing himself from that forgettable opening-round performance versus Saint Mary’s, which chased him in the first inning. The sophomore right-hander recorded five strikeouts and allowed just one hit.
As for the Beavers’ offense, it didn’t bombard USC like it did a night earlier, but it provided plenty of punch.
Gavin Turley had another explosive performance, finishing 3 for 4 with a home run, two RBIs and a run scored. He and Aiva Arquette bashed back-to-back homers in the third, fueling a three-run frame that helped the Beavers open up a 4-0 lead.
Meanwhile, Trent Caraway continued his sensational postseason run, blasting a solo home run to left field in the fifth, nudging OSU’s lead to 5-0. It was his fifth homer of the regional — he blasted one in each game — and the most by any Oregon State player in one postseason in school history.
The sophomore third baseman was named the Corvallis Regional MVP
Jacob Krieg added two hits, including a three-run homer in the eighth.
After scoring 34 runs and accumulating 38 hits on Sunday, the Beavers finished with nine runs and 11 hits Monday. That included four home runs and a double.
Visit oregonlive.com/beavers later Monday night for a full recap from the game.
Scroll below for a live updates recap:
Live updates recap
TOP OF THE NINTH
Segura surrenders a leadoff single to Hedges and Dorman elects to go to the bullpen, bringing in right-hander Laif Palmer to close the door. … Palmer gets a 4-6-3 double play and a groundout to end the game. Oregon State advances to the super regionals. (0 RUNS, 1 HIT, 0 LOB)
BOTTOM OF THE EIGHTH
Singer opens the frame with a single through the hole to left and Reeder lays down a nice sacrifice bunt to move Singer to second. … Macias steps to the plate with a man in scoring position. He rips a line drive single to center, but Singer had to hold up at third. Martinez bobbles the ball in center and Macias hustles to second base. OSU has runners on second and third with one out, looking for some insurance. … Krieg delivers — and then some — demolishing a 1-0 pitch into the left-center bleachers. The three-run homer is his first since April 19 and it gives OSU a 9-0 lead. … Talt follows with a strikeout. … Arquette follows with groundout to the pitcher. (3 RUNS, 3 HITS, 1 ERROR, 0 LOB)
TOP OF THE EIGHTH
Martinez works an eight-pitch walk and the Trojans have the lead off man aboard. … Segura answers by going 3-0 on Tejada, but he battles back to strike out USC’s No. 9 hitter. … Dorman makes a mound visit and elects to stick with Segura. His faith is rewarded as Covarrubias hits into a 4-6-3 double play. (0 RUNS, 0 HITS, 0 LOB)
BOTTOM OF THE SEVENTH
Talt grounds out to shortstop to open the inning and Arquette follows with a loud flyout to right field. But Turley delivers a two-out infield single and the Beavers have another base runner. … Weber rips a line drive single to left and the Beavers have two on with two out. … Caraway stares at strike three on a 2-2 pitch and the inning is over. (0 RUNS, 2 HITS, 2 LOB)
TOP OF THE SEVENTH
Basseer grounds out to Segura to open the inning, but Lamb draws a five-pitch walk and the Trojans have a runner on with one out. … Segura follows by striking out Martin-Grudzielanek and Lopez on seven pitches. (0 RUNS, 0 HITS, 1 LOB)
BOTTOM OF THE SIXTH
Reeder leads off the inning and hits a towering fly out to left. … Macias follows with a line drive to right-center field, but Basseer chases it down. … Krieg strikes out looking to end the inning. USC delivers a 1-2-3 frame. (0 RUNS, 0 HITS, 0 LOB)
TOP OF THE SIXTH
Eric Segura enters the game for the Beavers and his outing opens with a 96 mph fastball for a strike. … Segura strikes out Martinez on five pitches. … Segura plunks Tejada with a 1-2 pitch and USC has a runner on base with one out. … Covarrubias follows with a four-pitch walk and the Trojans have a little something going in the sixth. Hedges, their best hitter, steps to the plate. … Segura stops the bleeding by striking out Hedges with an inside offspeed pitch. … Lopez hits with two outs and two on. He slaps a chopper to second, Singer makes the easy play. The Beavers deliver another shutout frame. (0 RUNS, 0 HITS, 2 LOB)
BOTTOM OF THE FIFTH
Turley opens the frame by working a 2-2 count and hammering a ball foul to left field. But he strikes out swinging. … Weber strikes out looking after battling to a full-count. … Caraway’s home run barrage continues as he blasts a solo shot into the parking lot in left field. The sophomore third baseman has now hit a homer in all five regional games and in six of his last seven games overall. And No. 5 in a record-setting blast — he’s now hit the most home runs in Oregon State postseason history. Yes, in history. That includes players who have played a regional, super regional and College World Series. Singer grounds out to end the inning. Oregon State leads 6-0. (1 RUN, 1 HIT, 1 LOB)
TOP OF THE FIFTH
Lamb draws a six-pitch walk to open the frame and the Trojans have their lead off man aboard. That will bring OSU pitching coach Rich Dorman to the mound for a chat with DeCremer, who has thrown 62 pitches. … Decremer stays in the game and he delivers. Martin-Grudzielanek hits into a 6-4-3 double play. Decremer pumps his fist emphatically, screams and then heads to the third base dugout. Then he realizes there are only two out. He flashes two fingers toward Krieg and the Beavers’ infield, then climbs back on the mound. … Five pitches later, after striking out Lopez, DeCremer pumps his fist again and strolls to the dugout. If that’s it for the right-hander, it was quite a performance. In five shutout innings, he’s recorded six strikeouts and allowed just two hits and two walks. (0 RUNS, 0 HITS, 0 LOB)
BOTTOM OF THE FOURTH
Singer draws a four-pitch walk to open the fourth and the Beavers have the lead off man on base for the third time in four innings today. … Hunter plunks Reeder on the foot with a 1-2 pitch and OSU has runners on first and second with no outs. … And that’ll do it for Hunter, who gives way to left-hander Sax Matson. … Macias bunts Matson’s first pitch foul, swings through strike two, then watches a breaking ball cross the outside part of the plate. … Krieg steps to the plate with one out and two on. The man they call “Bonk” hammers a line drive single to left and the bases are loaded with one out. … Talt steps to the plate looking to break things open. … The Beavers’ starting right fielder sends a fly ball to center and Singer scores easily to push OSU’s lead to 5-0 with two outs in the inning. … Arquette hits with runners on the corners. But he won’t face Matson, who is pulled in favor of Caden Aoki, the Trojans’ Friday night starter. … The senior right-hander threw eight innings of four-hit ball in USC’s regional opener, racking up 114 pitches in a win over TCU. Three days later, he looks to stop the bleeding and keep the Trojans within striking distance in a win-or-go-home game. … Arquette flails at a 1-2 pitch outside the zone and the Trojans escape further damage. OSU takes a 5-0 lead into the fifth. (1 RUN, 1 HIT, 2 LOB)
TOP OF THE FOURTH
DeCremer tosses four consecutive balls to Hedges to open the frame and his first walk of the day puts the Trojans’ lead off man on base. … But DeCremer battles back and strikes out Lopez. … And then DeCremer says hello to a pitcher’s best friend, as Basseer grounds into a 4-6-3 double play. It’s Oregon State’s second of the game and it leads to the third three-up, three-down frame of the game for DeCremer. The Beavers’ starter has thrown 56 pitches, including 38 strikes, and is three outs away from putting himself in position to earn a win. (0 RUNS, 0 HITS, 0 LOB)
BOTTOM OF THE THIRD
Jacob Krieg opens the frame with a four-pitch walk and the Beavers have the leadoff man aboard. … Talt follows with a five-pitch strikeout. … Arquette steps to the plate and Hunter’s second pitch gets away from Tejada, allowing Krieg to advance to second base. One pitch later, Arquette demolishes a two-run home run 414 feet into the temporary bleachers in left-center field. It’s the 18th homer of the season for the first-round MLB prospect, but just the first at Goss Stadium, and he screams and dances his way around the bases in celebration. Oregon State leads 3-0. … But the fireworks are not over for the Beavers. Turley destroys a 3-1 pitch 418 feet over the left-center bleachers into the trees. OSU now leads 4-0. … Weber follows with a strikeout and Caraway steps to the plate with two outs. … He grounds out to third base to end the inning. (3 RUNS, 2 HITS, 0 LOB)
TOP OF THE THIRD
Augie Lopez watches a backdoor slider cross the outside corner of the plate and DeCremer opens the inning with his fourth strikeout of the day. … Maximo Martinez follows with a line drive single to left. Turley misplays the ball and Martinez darts to second. The Trojans have a man in scoring position with one out. … No. 9 hitter Richard Tejeda hits a grounder to shortstop and Arquette makes the play. Martinez moves to third with two outs. … Covarrubias rips a 1-0 pitch on a line to right field, but Talt is positioned perfectly and makes the catch to end the inning. DeCremer has thrown three scoreless innings to open the game, allowing two hits and striking out four. Impressive performance so far from a player who had made just one start in his young career. (0 RUNS, 1 HIT, 1 LOB)
BOTTOM OF THE SECOND
AJ Singer, Canon Reeder and Dallas Macias are due up for the Beavers. … Singer grounds out to shortstop to open the inning. … Reeder also grounds out to short for out No. 2. … Macias grounds out to second and the Beavers go down 1-2-3. (0 RUNS, 0 HITS, 0 LOB)
TOP OF THE SECOND
Jack Basseer whiffs on an 83 mph breaking ball in the dirt and DeCremer opens the second with this second K of the day. … Andrew Lamb belts a towering fly ball to left-center and Canon Reeder chases it down in the gap. … Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek goes down swinging after a four-pitch strikeout and DeCremer struts off the mound calmly after a 1-2-3 second. (0 RUNS, 0 HITS, 0 LOB)
BOTTOM OF THE FIRST
Easton Talt leads off with a blast off the right-center field fence and scoots into second with a stand-up double. After mashing 38 hits and scoring 34 runs in Sunday’s double-header, the Beavers’ continue to swing a hot bat in Corvallis. … Aiva Arquette follows with a chopper to third and Gavin Turley — the Beavers’ newly-crowned career RBI leader — steps to the plate. It takes just three batters and nine pitches for the Beavers to score their first run. Turley smacks a single the other way to right and Talt scores easily from second. Oregon State leads 1-0. … Weber taps a grounder to first in what should have been a double play ball. But the Lopez makes a poor throw to second base and the Trojans settle for the force out at second. … The red-hot Trent Caraway steps to the plate with two outs. … The Beavers’ third baseman strikes out and the inning is over. (1 RUN, 2 HITS, 1 LOB)
TOP OF THE FIRST
James DeCremer opens the game with a 93 mph fastball and we’re underway in Corvallis. Abbrie Covarrubias works a 1-2 count, fouls off a pitch to the third base side, and then rips a line drive single to left. The Trojans have their leadoff man on base with their best hitter — Ethan Hedges — stepping to the plate. … Hedges smacks a ball to second and the Beavers’ turn the ol’ 4-6-3 double play. … DeCremer strikes out Adrian Lopez on four pitches and that’ll do it for the first half of the opening frame. Solid start for the Beavers’ redshirt freshman right-hander, who has a 13-pitch (nine strike) first inning. (0 RUNS, 1 HIT, 0 LOB)
OSU’s starting lineup
1. Easton Talt, RF
2. Aiva Arquette, SS
3. Gavin Turley, LF
4. Wilson Weber, C
5. Trent Caraway, 3B
6. AJ Singer, 2B
7. Canon Reeder, CF
8. Dallas Macias, DH
9. Jacob Krieg, 1B
USC’s starting lineup
1. Abbrie Covarrubias, 2B
2. Ethan Hedges, 3B
3. Adrian Lopez, 1B
4. Jack Basseer, RF
5. Andrew Lamb, LF
6. Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek, SS
7. Augie Lopez, DH
8. Maximo Martinez, LF
9. Richard Tejeda, C
— Joe Freeman | jfreeman@oregonian.com | 503-294-5183 | @BlazerFreeman | @freemanjoe.bsky.social | Subscribe to The Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.