Controversial call sends Ducks into elimination game: Eugene Regional photos

The call came from Pittsburgh, Mark Wasikowski said.

Darby Winter photo

The call came from Pittsburgh, Mark Wasikowski said.

At least, that’s what the Oregon coach said the umpires told him following last night’s controversial ending to an eighth-inning rally that took a run off the board and a player out of the game in a 6-5 loss to Utah Valley in the first round of the Eugene Regional.

Down three entering the eighth, Oregon cut the lead to two with a Drew Smith solo shot. Anson Aroz followed with a walk, reached third on a Maddox Molony single and then tagged up on a Chase Meggers fly ball to left to set up a play at the plate. With Utah Valley catcher Mason Strong blocking the plate in anticipation of the throw, Aroz crashed through Strong in a slide attempt that was called safe by home plate umpire A.J. Wendel.

The score was 6-5.

Then it wasn’t: Utah Valley challenged the call, and upon a seven-minute review it was ruled that Aroz made malicious contact with Strong. He was called out, the run didn’t count, and Aroz was ejected from the game.

“All they said is it came from Pittsburgh,” Wasikowski said. “I feel bad for the umpires. They said it came from Pittsburgh, and it was out of their hands, and I'm really proud of the way Anson Aroz went into home plate the way he did. I was taught to play hard. I was taught to get after it by my dad and my coaches growing up, and unfortunately, playing hard was not rewarded tonight by whatever rule was supposedly violated by a player that was playing hard.”

While the Ducks would add a run in the bottom of the ninth, the one run taken off the board in the eighth ended up making the difference in a 6-5 loss that sends Oregon into an elimination game with Cal Poly today at 12:06 p.m.

Here’s photos from Friday night’s game from Darby Winter: