Friday, February 13
Eugene, Ore.
3:05 p.m.
University of Oregon
1-0
6
vs
2
George Mason
0-1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
George Mason
0
0
0
0
0
0
2
0
0
2
4
1
Oregon
1
4
0
0
1
0
0
0
X
6
11
1
Photo by: Deborah Mundorff
Ducks Open Season with a Win
02/13/26 | Baseball
EUGENE, Ore. — Sophomore Will Sanford put together a dominant outing over five innings on the mound while Dominic Hellman sparked Oregon's offense with a three-run home run in a 6-2 win over George Mason on Opening Day at PK Park on Friday.
Sanford (1-0) took control early, striking out the side in the top of the first inning. Things did not get easier for the Patriots (0-1) with Sanford retiring 10 of the first 11 batters he faced while picking off the lone runner at first during that stretch. Overall, he retired 14 of the 16 batters he faced before giving way to a pair of relievers.
The Ducks' starter allowed just one hit and only two base runners in five innings while not allowing a Patriot past first base while striking out five.
How It Happened: Oregon (1-0) did not waste time getting on the board taking a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Jax Gimenez doubled with one out before moving to third on a Hellman single and scoring when Drew Smith bases loaded walk.
The Ducks built on the lead in the second adding four runs while mixing a little small ball with some long ball. Freshman Angel Laya led off the frame with his first career hit before moving to third on back-to-back bunt base hits by Jack Brooks and Ryan Cooney. Gimenez pushed the lead to 2-0 driving in Laya with a ground out to second. Hellman followed with a 385-foot line drive over the left-field wall for a three-run homer and a 5-0 lead.
Oregon tacked on an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth. Laya led off the inning with a double over the center-fielders head, his third hit of the game, before coming around to score on a throwing error on a Brooks' sacrifice bunt.
Box Score Notes: Laya became the 30th true freshman position player in the modern era of Oregon baseball to start on opening day … Laya went 3-for-4 with two runs scored … The three hits were the most by a freshman on Opening Day since Tanner Smith and Aaron Zavala both had three knocks at Texas Tech in 2019 … Hellman finished 2-for-5 with three RBI and a run scored, giving him 26 career multi-hit and 14 career multi-RBI games … Gimenez had a career-best two doubles while going 2-for-5 with a RBI and run scored … In addition to Laya, three other players made their Duck debuts … Gabe Miranda got the start at first base and reached on a pair of hit-by-pitches … Miles Gosztola pitched the sixth and seventh innings, finishing with two strikeouts … Elijah Cook entered the game as a pinch runner in the eighth inning and played left in the ninth.
On Deck: The teams play a doubleheader at PK Park on Saturday beginning at 11 a.m.
Quotes:
Head Coach Mark Wasikowski
On the opening day performance and fan attendance...
"I thought the guys played well. We got a good performance out of Will Sanford. I thought Dom Hellman came up really big with a couple of at-bats. For a freshman to do what Angel Laya did in his first game is really good. And for the first game, I really appreciate the fans. The fans packed the house, and I love that."
On Will Sanford's improvement during the offseason...
"He's just a year older, mental toughness, calmness, and foot-flow have been really good for him. It's only one game in, but to have Matt Florer and Dan Straily around our pitchers, I've been impressed with both their work and their demeanor. Both their demeanors rub off on those guys."
On Dan Straily and Matt Florer at Oregon...
"Dan Straily played 11 years in the major leagues. I mean, our entire staff earnings — he probably made twice as much as all of us combined. That's how smart in the game Dan Straily is. Matt Florer does a tremendous job and has an elite baseball mind and is a really good developer. We were fortunate enough that we were able to convince him to come up."
Dominic Hellman
On starting the season off with a homerun…
"It feels pretty good. I had a bunch of guys in front of me put together some tough at-bats. Jax Gimenez scored a guy to get that going and then the juices were flowing from there."
On Will Sanford's performance…
"The kid is a stud. If you call last year a rough year for him, that speaks volumes to who he is as a kid. Through camp he's been lights out. To see him go out there and compete like that is great. That's just what he does on a random Friday or Saturday for us."
On goals for the season…
"Same thing as last year, being consistent. I want to make sure I get healthy and take guys under my wing. I want to let them know that it's going to be a long season and just because we drop a game or have one bad at-bat, there's going to be a lot more games. Making sure we're consistent with taking care of what we need to, still competing, and doing everything we can."
Angel Laya
On earning his playing time in the outfield…
"I played to the standard. It's fun to compete with the guys but playing to the standard and succeeding will help you start."
On avoiding slow starts…
"I just keep going. Everyone has some flaws. I could've gone 0-for-4 today but tomorrow is a new day and today is over."
On nerves and pregame routine…
"I was generally nervous, but I calmed myself down and reminded myself I've done this all my life. Pregame I have no music or energy drinks. I stay to myself, focus, and do my thing."
Will Sanford
On pitching against an aggressive hitting team…
"Knowing that most of their players don't strike out a lot and they like to put a lot of balls in play, we tried to take advantage of that, get ahead early and make some weak contacts."
On mentality against tough batters...
"Being able to trust each pitch I'm throwing and not being scared to walk guys has been a big thing for me. Being on the attack and forcing them to put it in play, you get a call sometimes to go your way."
On pitching while Oregon is ahead…
"It's great, we take advantage of that. The thing for us is when we get those big numbers, being able to shut them down right away. We put up a 0 quickly, get our offense back out there and take the momentum from there."
On Matt Florer's approach…
"His approach with me is to trust my routine and let me do what I need to do. He also helps me on the mental side. If I am struggling with something, he's there for me and gets me out of that. It's been a big adjustment for me knowing I have a pitching coach that has trust in me. It makes it easy to pitch."
Sanford (1-0) took control early, striking out the side in the top of the first inning. Things did not get easier for the Patriots (0-1) with Sanford retiring 10 of the first 11 batters he faced while picking off the lone runner at first during that stretch. Overall, he retired 14 of the 16 batters he faced before giving way to a pair of relievers.
The Ducks' starter allowed just one hit and only two base runners in five innings while not allowing a Patriot past first base while striking out five.
How It Happened: Oregon (1-0) did not waste time getting on the board taking a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Jax Gimenez doubled with one out before moving to third on a Hellman single and scoring when Drew Smith bases loaded walk.
The Ducks built on the lead in the second adding four runs while mixing a little small ball with some long ball. Freshman Angel Laya led off the frame with his first career hit before moving to third on back-to-back bunt base hits by Jack Brooks and Ryan Cooney. Gimenez pushed the lead to 2-0 driving in Laya with a ground out to second. Hellman followed with a 385-foot line drive over the left-field wall for a three-run homer and a 5-0 lead.
Oregon tacked on an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth. Laya led off the inning with a double over the center-fielders head, his third hit of the game, before coming around to score on a throwing error on a Brooks' sacrifice bunt.
Box Score Notes: Laya became the 30th true freshman position player in the modern era of Oregon baseball to start on opening day … Laya went 3-for-4 with two runs scored … The three hits were the most by a freshman on Opening Day since Tanner Smith and Aaron Zavala both had three knocks at Texas Tech in 2019 … Hellman finished 2-for-5 with three RBI and a run scored, giving him 26 career multi-hit and 14 career multi-RBI games … Gimenez had a career-best two doubles while going 2-for-5 with a RBI and run scored … In addition to Laya, three other players made their Duck debuts … Gabe Miranda got the start at first base and reached on a pair of hit-by-pitches … Miles Gosztola pitched the sixth and seventh innings, finishing with two strikeouts … Elijah Cook entered the game as a pinch runner in the eighth inning and played left in the ninth.
On Deck: The teams play a doubleheader at PK Park on Saturday beginning at 11 a.m.
Quotes:
Head Coach Mark Wasikowski
On the opening day performance and fan attendance...
"I thought the guys played well. We got a good performance out of Will Sanford. I thought Dom Hellman came up really big with a couple of at-bats. For a freshman to do what Angel Laya did in his first game is really good. And for the first game, I really appreciate the fans. The fans packed the house, and I love that."
On Will Sanford's improvement during the offseason...
"He's just a year older, mental toughness, calmness, and foot-flow have been really good for him. It's only one game in, but to have Matt Florer and Dan Straily around our pitchers, I've been impressed with both their work and their demeanor. Both their demeanors rub off on those guys."
On Dan Straily and Matt Florer at Oregon...
"Dan Straily played 11 years in the major leagues. I mean, our entire staff earnings — he probably made twice as much as all of us combined. That's how smart in the game Dan Straily is. Matt Florer does a tremendous job and has an elite baseball mind and is a really good developer. We were fortunate enough that we were able to convince him to come up."
Dominic Hellman
On starting the season off with a homerun…
"It feels pretty good. I had a bunch of guys in front of me put together some tough at-bats. Jax Gimenez scored a guy to get that going and then the juices were flowing from there."
On Will Sanford's performance…
"The kid is a stud. If you call last year a rough year for him, that speaks volumes to who he is as a kid. Through camp he's been lights out. To see him go out there and compete like that is great. That's just what he does on a random Friday or Saturday for us."
On goals for the season…
"Same thing as last year, being consistent. I want to make sure I get healthy and take guys under my wing. I want to let them know that it's going to be a long season and just because we drop a game or have one bad at-bat, there's going to be a lot more games. Making sure we're consistent with taking care of what we need to, still competing, and doing everything we can."
Angel Laya
On earning his playing time in the outfield…
"I played to the standard. It's fun to compete with the guys but playing to the standard and succeeding will help you start."
On avoiding slow starts…
"I just keep going. Everyone has some flaws. I could've gone 0-for-4 today but tomorrow is a new day and today is over."
On nerves and pregame routine…
"I was generally nervous, but I calmed myself down and reminded myself I've done this all my life. Pregame I have no music or energy drinks. I stay to myself, focus, and do my thing."
Will Sanford
On pitching against an aggressive hitting team…
"Knowing that most of their players don't strike out a lot and they like to put a lot of balls in play, we tried to take advantage of that, get ahead early and make some weak contacts."
On mentality against tough batters...
"Being able to trust each pitch I'm throwing and not being scared to walk guys has been a big thing for me. Being on the attack and forcing them to put it in play, you get a call sometimes to go your way."
On pitching while Oregon is ahead…
"It's great, we take advantage of that. The thing for us is when we get those big numbers, being able to shut them down right away. We put up a 0 quickly, get our offense back out there and take the momentum from there."
On Matt Florer's approach…
"His approach with me is to trust my routine and let me do what I need to do. He also helps me on the mental side. If I am struggling with something, he's there for me and gets me out of that. It's been a big adjustment for me knowing I have a pitching coach that has trust in me. It makes it easy to pitch."
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Sanford, Will (1-0)
L: Owen Stewart (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Owen Clyne 1
RBI: Laken Tignor 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Jake Butler 1 ; Luciano Terilli 1
HBP: Lucas Alberti 1
PO: Luciano Terilli 1
Batting:
2B: Gimenez, Jax 2 ; Laya, Angel 1
HR: Hellman, Dominic 1
RBI: Gimenez, Jax 1 ; Hellman, Dominic 3 ; Smith, Drew 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Cooney, Ryan 1 ; Gimenez, Jax 1 ; Hellman, Dominic 1 ; Laya, Angel 2 ; Brooks, Jack 1
SB: Brooks, Jack 2
CS: Cooney, Ryan 1
HBP: Cooney, Ryan 1 ; Miranda, Gabe 2 ; Molony, Maddox 1 ; Brooks, Jack 1
Game Leaders
AB
4
R
2
H
3
RBI
0
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
1
AB
5
R
1
H
2
RBI
3
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
UTL
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OF
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INF/OF
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LHP
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INF
/ BaseballOF
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1B
/ Baseball
RHP
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INF/OF
/ BaseballWill Sanford | Postgame vs. George Mason (Game 1)
Saturday, February 14
Angel Laya | Postgame vs. George Mason (Game 1)
Saturday, February 14
Dominic Hellman | Postgame vs. George Mason (Game 1)
Saturday, February 14
Mark Wasikowski | Postgame vs. George Mason (Game 1)
Saturday, February 14
