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Miller Masterclass

Box Score

EUGENE, Ore. – No. 4 Stanford emphatically wrapped up a three-game sweep of Oregon with a 10-0 win on Saturday at PK Park.

"Wulff and Daschbach really carried us this week. When you want to win on the road you need guys to step up like that," said the Clarke and Elizabeth Nelson Director of Baseball David Esquer. "This was a fantastic performance from Miller. He can be dominant when he's on, and you saw what that looked like today. I credit our guys for coming out focused and finishing the job against a very good team."

Starting pitcher Erik Miller (W, 5-0) was spectacular in 6.0 shutout innings, setting a new career high in strikeouts (11) while allowing just four hits. Brandon Wulff reached base four times and hit his fourth home run of the series while scoring three times, and Maverick Handley, Will Matthiessen and Andrew Daschbach, who also homered, each scored twice. Stanford's defense played error-free, Tim Tawa drove in three runs and Brandon Dieter drove in a pair.

The Cardinal (27-6-0, 13-2-0 Pac-12) set up shop in the top of the first, plating five runs in the frame for the second straight day. Matthiessen poked a single through the left side to open the scoring and Tawa's sacrifice fly made it 2-0. With the bases loaded and two out, Nick Brueser's line-drive single made it 3-0 before Dieter's single brought in Daschbach and Brueser.

Miller started the day on a tear, striking out the first five batters he faced. After a pair of two-out base runners, the lefty stranded both with an inning-ending ground ball to end the second.

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Daschbach launched his third homer in two days in the top of the third, a solo shot well over the bullpen beyond the left-field fence. Miller added another two strikeouts in the home half, stranding another runner. In the fourth, the Ducks (22-16-0, 7-9-0) opened the inning with a lead-off single but the runner was erased when Miller got a double play ground ball before adding his eighth strikeout to the day to end the frame.

Tawa extended the lead to 8-0 with a bases-loaded, two-run single in the fifth and Miller worked another scoreless frame in the bottom half, adding his ninth strikeout, which tied his career high.

In the sixth, Miller added two more strikeouts, giving him a career-high 11 on the day before Zach Grech took over to start the seventh. Grech struck out a pair in 1.1 shutout innings before making way for Austin Weiermiller with one down in the eighth. Weiermiller retired the only two batters he faced before Wulff's victory-lap home run in the ninth made it 10-0. Wulff's home run caromed high up the stadium light structure beyond the left-field fence, giving him four for the series and 12 on the season. Weiermiller worked a one-two-three ninth to wrap up the series in which the Cardinal outscored Oregon, 35-9.

No. 4 Stanford returns to action on Monday when it plays host to Gonzaga at 1 p.m. and on Tuesday at 6 p.m. when San Jose State visits Sunken Diamond. Live streaming and live statistics for both games will be available at GoStanford.com.

Cardinal Notes

  • Wulff finished the series 7-for-10 with four home runs, eight RBI, nine runs and four walks. Daschbach finished the series 6-for11 with three home runs, five RBI, seven runs and two walks.
  • It was Stanford's 13th game of the season with 10 or more strikeouts.
  • The Cardinal has hit 21 home runs in its last nine games and seven multi-home run games during that span.
  • Miller's 11 strikeouts tied for the most by a Stanford pitcher this season – Brendan Beck fanned 11 in Stanford's season-opening win over Ball State (Feb. 15).