3/12/18 Emerald Media - Duck Season Baseball

Oregon returns three of its star pitchers who hope to lead the Ducks back to the Women’s College World Series

Duck Season

The Emerald Media Group Presents: Baseball & Softball Preview | 2018

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Table of COVER: SOFTBALL’S TRIO OF PITCHERS

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NEW FACES OF SOFTBALL

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SOFTBALL SENIORS UP TO BAT

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13 NEW FACES OF BASEBALL

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YOVAN’S NEW ROLE

GOLDFARB BACK IN STARTING LINEUP Duck Season Magazine

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Duck Season 2018

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SOFTBALL’S NEW FACES

BY COLE KUNDICH

Some of the key contributors from a Ducks team coming off an appearance in the 2017 NCAA Women’s College World Series have departed. Yet, the same championshiplevel aspirations are still in place.

It’ll take a team effort to get back to that level, and that includes help from the new faces that have arrived in Eugene. Here’s a look at some of the recent additions that head coach Mike White and his staff have added to the Ducks for the 2018 campaign.

37 DJ SANDERS SHORTSTOP

Oregon’s power-hitting starts with Sanders, the shortstop and Louisiana-Lafayette transfer.

Entering her senior year, Sanders will suit up for the Ducks for only one season.

rough 17 games, she’s already making her impact felt. She currently has seven home runs under her belt and is third on the team with 17 RBIs.

She was a fi rst-team NFCA All-American in 2017, hitting 29 home runs with 82 RBI’s. She was named the Sun Belt Conference player of the year and was one of 10 fi nalists for the USA Softball national player of the year award.

After losing four-year shortstop Nikki Udria, who was one of the top players in the country, the Ducks will slide Sanders right in Udria’s place where she is expected to carry on the same high level of production Udria brought.

17 MARY IAKOPO CATCHER

e Ducks will get only one year with Sanders, but Oregon’s time with Mary Iakopo is just getting started.

hitter in the lineup. So far, so good for both. Svekis is hitting .300, and Iakopo is hitting .321 and is second on the team with four doubles.

A freshman from Los Alamitos, California, Iakopo spent last summer playing for the USA Junior National Team. In her senior year at Los Alamitos High School, she hit .373 with 26 RBIs. Her bat hasn’t had an issue transitioning to the college ranks either. Iakopo and Gwen Svekis are splitting time at catcher and as the designated

But as a catcher, Iakopo’s impact goes further than her offensive production. Oregon has one of the top pitching staffs in the country. Svekis, now in her senior season, has earned the trust of the rotation, and Iakopo seems to be on her way as well.

If the start of the 2018 season is any indication, the Ducks have found their catcher for the future.

28 SHAYE BOWDEN UTILITY

e freshman out of Sunnyslope High School in Phoenix, Arizona is listed as a utility player and can do it all. Bowden plays catcher, third base and is in the outfield. As a high school senior last year, she hit .654 with 17 home runs and 84 RBIs. However, with a veteran-led Ducks team that

is one of the top in the country, Bowden hasn’t found a permanent role yet. If not this year, though, that time is coming soon.

Bowden has made the most of the 16 games and 14 starts she has made, hitting .348 in 23 at-bats.

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Oregon catcher Gwen Svekis (21) opens her mitt to catch the ball.

Oregon third baseman Jenna Lilley (00) slides to third.

(Emerald Archives)

SENIORS COME OUT

SWINGING B Y S H AW N M E D O W P H OTO B Y A DA M E B E R H A R DT

When Oregon softball opened its season at the Kajikawa Classic in Tempe, Ariz., the team was ready to see what they would bring to the diamond after last season’s run to the Women’s College World Series.

“We didn’t really change that much as a program, our lineup, so it was not exactly what we were expecting, but it was defi nitely exhilarating and fun to see and be a part of,” Svekis said.

“I thought we were going to be a more defensive team,” head coach Mike White said. “ ey surprised me with the offense — certainly the number of home runs.”

e power hitting is a big change for Oregon, which played a smallball style last season.

ose home runs came in bunches for the Ducks while they were in Arizona, as Oregon hit 17 in the six-game span. Twelve of them were thanks to the seniors.

Oregon entered the 2018 season with four seniors on its roster: Gwen Svekis, Jenna Lilley, Lauren Lindvall and transfer DJ Sanders. All of them are powerful at the plate, and they’ll have the responsibility of carrying the offense for the Ducks this season.

So far, they’ve shown no problem doing so, which was showcased when the four seniors each hit home runs in Oregon’s 14-2 win over Missouri in Tempe.

In 2017, the seniors were key pieces to the lineup. Nikki Udria and outfielders Danica Mercado and Sammie Puentes were main fi xtures on the team. White called their departures “pretty big losses.”

Udria swung a big bat, leading the team last year with 52 RBIs. Replacing Udria at shortstop, Sanders transferred from Louisiana-Lafayette for her senior year after hitting an NCAA-leading 29 home runs last season. rough her fi rst 14 games, Sanders has hit seven home runs, one fewer than Svekis, the home run leader and a fellow senior.

For Lilley, 2017 was a difficult year at the plate. e USA national

team member managed to hit just .258 with one home run and 26 RBIs. She hit .427 and .326 in her freshman and sophomore years, respectively. Ahead of the Ducks’ home opener, she’s .429 with two home runs and 19 RBIs. “When it comes to the end of the season, Jenna Lilley is there.

She steps up,” White said. “If we can just get her to have that kind of mentality from day one — just do what you do don’t worry about the numbers — she’s gonna do just fi ne.” e Ducks will have to learn to balance the small-ball style of last year with the reemergence of the power hitting of the early part of this year. Oregon has dropped four games to ranked opponents, two of which were 1-0 and one a 2-1 loss that featured a Megan Kleist nohitter. e Ducks will have to fi nd a way to get the runs in close games.

“We may take some losses, but it’ll make us better in the end,” White said. “I want to morph the two. Use a little gap to gap power with the occasional home run.”

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Oregon Ducks pitcher Megan Kleist (22) winds up against Oregon State. (Emerald Archives)

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Duck Season Magazine

Cover

OREGON SOFTBALL’S

TRIPLE THREAT B Y AU G U ST H OWE L L PHOTOS BY BEN GREEN Gwen Svekis made a powerful statement after Oregon’s fi rst invitational of the season, in which the Ducks went undefeated.

“I can confidently say that I think we have the best pitching staff in the country.”

As a senior, and she has seen plenty of pitchers come and go, and her praise doesn’t come lightly.

On a softball team loaded with talent, Oregon’s pitching is its biggest strength. e Ducks return the entire starting rotation that went to the Women’s College World Series semifi nals last year. In a conference as tough as the Pac-12, the Ducks’ dominant pitching could be the key to claiming the Pac-12 title. e entire right-handed rotation features Megan Kleist, Maggie Balint and Miranda Elish, as well as freshman Olivia Kinsey. Before the season, Kleist and Balint were added to the USA Softball Top 50 Collegiate Player of the Year watch list.

Both had over 150 strikeouts last season and helped Oregon post the lowest earned run average in the Pac-12 last season at 1.41.

“I think we all really compliment each other nicely,” Kleist said. “I think each pitcher has something different to offer.”

Kleist, a junior from Appleton, Wisconsin, is the best of the three starters. Prior to this season, she was ranked No. 13 on ESPN’s top-25 collegiate softball players. Last season, she had a 1.32 ERA with 161 strikeouts and posted a 21-5 record.

Earlier this season, Kleist once again demonstrated her dominance. She pitched nine innings and struck out 16 batters against Ole Miss. She also threw her second career no-hitter against No. 13 Florida State.

Kleist has repeatedly asked head coach Mike White how to continue to be an ace on the mound. He knows a lot of her strength comes from her mental toughness.

“I told her, mechanically, there’s not much else I see that you’re lacking. You’ve got good velocity, your spins are as good as anybody out there,” White said. “But I think it’s her ability to tighten up in the big situation, to get that big out, to make that great pitch.”

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“ Pitcher Maggie Balint (25). (Phillip Quinn)

As the Ducks’ catcher, Svekis provides senior leadership and has complete faith in the pitching staff. She caught all four of Oregon’s starters in the six-game invitational at the Kajikawa Classic. Each game, she witnessed how the pitchers work with White and how they improve with each practice.

“It’s always fun for me to work with them because they are all so different, even though they compliment each other in different ways,” Svekis said.

Balint, a sophomore, has not pitched many innings so far this season. Of the fi rst six games she started, half have ended early because Oregon was ahead by more than eight, the cutoff for a run-rule victory. ough Balint was solid in the starting rotation, she loves to be the closer in critical situations.

“I love having runners on and no count — that’s what I pitch for,” Balint said after closing in the fi nal game of a series sweep of Florida State last season. “I really like going in with runners on because I can put the team on my back, and it’s an opportunity to help another pitcher out.”

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Duck Season Magazine

I THINK EACH PITCHER HAS SOMETHING DIFFERENT TO OFFER.”

Oregon’s high-powered offense and lights-out defense compliment each other.

However, Svekis knows pitchers can run into trouble when they see so many runs on the scoreboard.

“We talk to them a lot about how for them, it’s almost harder to pitch when we’re up by so much. So it’s important to keep them locked into a game mindset where we’re only winning 1-0,” Svekis explained.

It’s a tough balance to keep for pitchers.

On the one hand, they need to be sharp to keep putting away hitters, but it’s hard to stay locked in when the team is ahead by eight runs.

“It makes the game a lot more comfortable.

You have some wiggle room. Making a little mistake isn’t that big of a deal,” Elish told Pac-12 Network. “Our offense is stepping up behind us and letting us pitch our game.” ough Elish played the least out of the three pitchers last year, she has impressed in her appearances. e sophomore pitched a complete game shutout with 10 strikeouts in a 4-0 win over No. 7 LSU at an early season invitational. In her 38 appearances, Elish

Pitcher Megan Kleist (22) and catcher Gwen Svekis (21) talk in between pitches.

has yet to lose a game and owns a 20-0 record through 23 starts.

Kinsey is the freshman in the circle, but she is no stranger to the big stage. As a junior in high school, she was the 2016 Missouri Gatorade Player of the Year, and posted a 17-3 record with a 1.03 ERA. She can also hit the ball. at same year she batted .429 with 28 RBIs and six home runs.

So far, White has expressed that he doesn’t want to overwork Kinsey too early.

“She’s got to learn to fi nd a role,” White said. “’How can I help this team?’ It could be in middle relief or on a long weekend when we play a lot. at’s my goal with her, is to get her in a situation where she can help this club.” is starting rotation is among the best in the Pac-12. It’s rare for a team to return all three

pitchers who were instrumental in a team’s playoff success. e Ducks will have their work cut out for them while facing elite pitchers in conference play.

Oregon isn’t the only team returning a healthy chunk of its rotation. Washington and UCLA are both ranked in the top-5 in the NFCA Coaches poll, and both team’s aces are back this season. UCLA will return Rachel Garcia, last season’s conference freshman of the year who went 23-9 with a 1.87 ERA and led the league in strikeouts with 202. Washington is returning its star Taran Alvelo, who, as a sophomore, threw 200 strikeouts and had a 35-9 record.

With these pitchers returning, it’s critical that Oregon retained its experiences and talented rotation to remain competitive against these teams.

For many returners, the College World Series brought a

serious spotlight which caused the Ducks to lose some focus. e loss to Oklahoma that brought their season to an end made Kleist and other players direct their focus toward simplicity.

“I think playing in the World Series has really opened my eyes to keeping the game simple,” Kleist said. “You don’t want to make the game bigger than what it is.”

So far this season, the box score says it all. Oregon has only allowed more than three runs in a game once. However, the team’s schedule only gets more difficult, starting with UCLA at home on March 16. e Ducks will also have to play Washington, currently No. 1 in the country, in Seattle for a three-game series. In order for Oregon to win those games and get back to the College World Series, Kleist, Balint, Elish and Kinsey will have to be locked in.

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NEW YEAR, NEW ROLE FOR YOVAN After his teammates settle onto the field, Oregon pitcher Kenyon Yovan (21) sits on the fence of the dugout before the inning begins.

(Emerald Archives)

BY GUS MORRIS As the 2018 Oregon baseball season hits full swing, the impressive return of outfielder Jakob Goldfarb to the starting lineup has been a pleasant surprise. He missed all of last season because of a toe injury and redshirted to preserve his junior season.

Goldfarb wasted no time making an impact with his return to the lineup this season. He hit the fi rst three-run home run of his career as part of a career-high five-RBI day in the season opener against Loyola Marymount in the Marucci Desert Classic. In total, he hit .545 with three home runs and seven RBIs in the three-day event.

“I’ve been working hard in the weight room, but I didn’t really know what to expect on the power side of things,” Goldfarb said about his performance. “I just knew I was going to try to keep it simple with my approach and try to use the middle of the field.”

Opening the season hitting in warm environments such as Las Vegas and Los Angeles means more opportunities for big offense because the ball faces less air resistance.

However, since playing at PK Park, his numbers have declined. In five games played at that location, Goldfarb is 4-for-19 with four RBIs and zero home runs. Against Florida Atlantic on March 3, he came to the plate three different times with runners in scoring position but was 0-for-3 in those situations.

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“He made a big impact as a freshman,” head coach George Horton said. “ e little things here and there kept him from reaching his potential. e one thing with Goldy that you get is he always plays the game extremely hard, aggressive and very confidently.”

A new wrinkle to Goldfarb’s game that the coaches have been working on is the catcher position. He is competing with Braden Stutzman and Ray Soderman to fi ll the void left at the position by Tim Susnara, a 2017 eighth-round draft pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

With Oregon’s Feb. 21 game against Portland postponed due to weather, Goldfarb missed his fi rst opportunity to get playing time at the catcher position. Soderman has seen the majority of the playing time at the position.

“Everybody on the team knew that the catching position was going to be up for grabs,” Soderman said. “We have three good catchers, and any one of us can get the job done.”

With spending so much practice time working on catching there has been less practice time for him in the outfield, but his play hasn’t been suffering because of it.

“It’s defi nitely hard to hit here at PK where it’s cold and the air is pretty heavy,” Goldfarb said. “ ere’s always those parks where you’re like, ‘Man, it’s a pad the stats kind of weekend,’ but you just really try to stay within yourself and do what you practice to do the whole year.”

“He really wasn’t refi ning his defensive skills in the outfield, and yet he went off in the outfield,” Horton said. “He threw a guy out at second on a base hit and his throwing was spectacular. So I guess practice is overrated as far as me teaching the outfielders.”

Goldfarb put together a solid freshman season in 2015. He had seven multi-hit games in 44 starts, including three games with three hits or more, highlighted by a then-career high 4-for-5 performance against Oregon State.

Whether or not he gets extended playing time at the catcher position this season remains to be seen, but one thing’s for sure — his outfield abilities and early offensive output have been impressive contributions to a team looking to get back to the postseason for the fi rst time since 2015.

His work in the outfield — where Goldfarb 12

has been playing for as long has he can remember — was impressive as well. When tasked with making a defensive play, he did so 95.3 percent of the time with just three errors.

Duck Season Magazine

BASEBALL’S NEW FACES

As Oregon baseball fights for a successful season, here are some freshman who are here to build a new foundation.

BY JACK BUTLER

05 JONNY DELUCA OUTFIELDER

e center fielder from Agoura Hills, California is already batting in the second spot of the lineup this season. He has struggled, which is not surprising for someone making the jump to college baseball, with a .209 batting average and a .245 on-base percentage. But he has speed and some aggressiveness on the base

paths. He is second on the team in bases stolen and attempts. DeLuca played for the Yakima Valley Pippins in the West Coast League over the summer. While there, his numbers were good.

He hit .287 with 19 RBIs. He also got drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 39th round of the 2017 MLB Draft.

33 CULLEN KAFKA RIGHT-HANDED PITCHER

e right-handed pitcher from Walnut Creek, California will be an important piece in the Ducks’ arsenal this season. In his two starts this season, he has a 6.65 ERA, so he’ll need to improve to strengthen the back end of the Oregon rotation.

He had a rough outing in his fi rst appearance as a Duck. Against UNLV, he allowed four earned runs

in just two innings. But he has improved since then. He pitched three shutout innings against Seattle University and allowed three earned runs in 5.1 innings pitched in a start against FAU. Kafka also played for the Yakima Valley Pippins over the summer. He fi nished with a 4.02 ERA in 20.2 innings pitched.

24 EVAN WILLIAMS OUTFIELDER

e outfielder has started 10 games this season. He has the sixth-best batting average on the team at .238, but he has the team high in on-base percentage at .429. His ability to

draw walks makes him a valuable part of the lineup, and he has a team-low in strikeouts, so he is not someone who pitchers enjoy facing on the mound.

22 KOLBY SOMERS LHP/FIRST BASE

e left-handed pitcher out of the bullpen has made four appearances so far and impressed in them all. He has a 3.18 ERA in 5.2 innings pitched, and his 6:1 strikeout-walk ratio is impressive.

Opponents do have a good batting average against

him — at .381, so that will need to improve. But of the 27 batters he has faced, he’s only allowed one walk, so he can force batters to swing. Somers is an Oregonian, graduating from Century High School in Hillsboro.

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Jakob Goldfarb Outfielder Jakob Goldfarb (23) catches the ball in a game against Illinois State. (Emerald Archives)

As the 2018 season gets underway, one of the surprises to start the season has been the return of outfielder Jakob Goldfarb to the starting lineup for the Oregon baseball team. He missed all of last season because of a toe injury and redshirted to preserve his junior season.

Goldfarb, or Goldy as he’s referred to by his teammates and coaches, wasted no time in making his return to the lineup this season. He hit his first three-run home run of his career as part of a career high five-RBI day in the season opener against Loyola Marymount in the Marucci Desert Classic. All total in the three-day Las Vegas, Nevada event, he hit .545 with three home runs and seven RBIs. “I’ve been working hard in the weight room but I didn’t really know what to expect on the power side of things,” Goldfarb said about his Las Vegas performance.

“I just knew I was going to try to keep it simple with my approach and try to use the middle of the field. It just really worked out and I got into a few balls.”

Having opportunities to hit in warm environments in Las Vegas, Nevada and Los Angeles, California to open the season means more opportunities for big offensive outputs where the ball faces less resistance.

“It’s definitely hard to hit here at PK where it’s cold and the air is pretty heavy,” Goldfarb said. “ ere’s always those parks where you’re like ‘man it’s a pad the stats kind of weekend’, but you just really try to stay within yourself and do what you practice to do the whole year.”

Goldfarb put together a solid freshman season in 2015.

He had seven multi-hit games in 44 starts including three games with three hits or more, highlighted by a thencareer high 4-for-5 performance against Oregon State.

His work in the outfield, where Goldfarb has been playing for as long has he can remember, was impressive

ERUPTS BACK INTO THE STARTING LINEUP AFTER MISSING ALL LAST SEASON

BY ZAK LASTER

as well. When tasked with making a defensive play he did so 95.3 percent of the time with just three errors.

“He made a big impact as a freshman,” head coach George Horton said. “ en little things here and there kept him from reaching his potential. e one thing with Goldy that you get is he always plays the game extremely hard, aggressive and very confidently.”

A new wrinkle to Goldfarb’s game that the coaches have been working on is the catcher position. He is competing with Braden Stutzman and Ray Soderman to fill the void left at the position by Tim Susnara, a 2017 8th-round draft pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks. With weather cancelling the Feb. 21 game against Portland, Goldfarb missed his first opportunity to get playing time at the catcher position. Soderman has seen the majority of the playing time at the position.

“Everybody on the team knew that the catching position was going to be up for grabs,” Soderman said.

“We have three good catchers and any one of us can get the job done.”

With spending so much practice time working on catching there has been less practice time for him in the outfield, but his play isn’t suffering because of it.

“He really wasn’t refining his defensive skills in the outfield and yet he went off in the outfield,” Horton said. “He threw a guy out at second on a base hit and his throwing was spectacular. So I guess practice is overrated as far as me teaching the outfielders.”

Whether or not he gets extended playing time at the catcher position this season remains to be seen, one thing’s for sure, his outfield abilities and early offensive output have been impressive contributions to a team looking to get back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2015.

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