Oregon coach Mark Wasikowski discusses upcoming super regional vs. Oral Roberts
The last time Oregon baseball was in this spot, it didn’t end well for the Ducks.
Kent State came to Eugene and hit a walk-off double that was barely fair down the left field line to upset Oregon 3-2 in Game 3 of the 2012 Super Regional.
Oregon hopes this series ends on a much better note.
The Ducks host Oral Roberts for a best-of-three beginning Friday with the winner moving on to the College World Series for the first time in either program’s history.
“It’s special. I know they have a lot of things planned,” Oregon coach Mark Wasikowski said. “I think they sold this thing out in less than an hour. The fan interest and the community and what that means for us. It’s awesome.”
There is going to be a fanfest event before Games 1 and 2 for sure as well as possible bleacher seating in the outfield if it’s been approved. In other words, hosting a Super Regional is a big deal and doesn’t happen very often.
Ironically, Wasikowski has been at Oregon to experience the only two times this has happened for the Ducks. He was an assistant under George Horton back in 2012. Coach Waz has seen what it takes to build up a program to reach this point.
“It’s hard,” he said on Wednesday during a press conference. “It’s not easy to get to Omaha and it’s not easy to get to Super Regionals or even the Regionals. To be able to do that on a consistent basis here in Year 3, we’re going in the right direction.”
The ultimate direction the Ducks want to go is, according to the sign just outside PK Park, is east, or more specifically, 1,687 miles. Oregon is just two wins away from making that historic journey.
But Oral Roberts isn’t coming to Eugene just to be cannon fodder. The Golden Eagles are for real and they’ll be a tough opponent.
According to Wasikowski, the Ducks will need to go out and win this. ORU won’t hand it to them.
“Statistically on paper, they have the best defense in the country and they rolled through a really difficult regional,” he said. “We’re very familiar with that team and they’re good.”
The Eugene Super Regional will get underway Friday with first pitch scheduled for 5 pm PST. Games 1 and 2 will be televised on ESPNU.
