BASEBALL: Beavs take series

OREGON STATE TOOK the series from Utah in the rubber match as Dan Child struck out 11 and Nate Esposito walked with the bases loaded in the 10th inning. The win sent the 23rd-ranked Oregon State baseball team to a 5-4 victory as the Beavs rapped out a season-high six doubles.

Esposito, who was a defensive replacement at catcher in the ninth, walked on four straight pitches from Utah reliever Josh Chapman. It scored Ryan Dunn, who had doubled to lead off the inning, and was the Beavers’ third consecutive walk in the inning.

Child became the first Beaver to reach double figure strikeouts in a game this season. He scattered four runs – all of the solo variety coming in the second, third, fifth and sixth innings – and nine hits in working all 10 innings. He walked just one and improved to 5-3 on the year.

The 11 strikeouts set a career-high for the right-handed sophomore.

The Beavers (32-17 overall, 13-11 Pac-12) return home Tuesday for a non-conference game with Portland at Goss Stadium. First pitch is slated for 5:35 p.m. PT. There are bit seven games left in the regular season. OSU is projected as safely in for the postseason by Baseball America but on the bubble as a regional host.

Conforto had a big day overall for the Beavers. He finished with three hits, including a two-run home run in the Beavers’ three-run third. On the year, he has 11 home runs – tied for the Pac-12 Conference lead – and has 63 runs driven in. The 63 RBI is second-best at OSU in a single-season, four shy of Joe Gerber’s (2000) program-record 67.

Conforto ended the series at Utah with seven hits, three home runs and eight RBI over three games.