EUGENE, Ore. – Gonzaga plated the first run of the game and led 3-2 going into the bottom of the seventh inning of the first of two non conference midweek matchups with No. 20 Oregon at PK Park on Tuesday, but the Ducks (27-12, 11-7 Pac-12) exploded for nine runs over the next two frames to surge ahead for an 11-4 win.

Cade McGee finished with two hits – including his fifth homer of the season to put GU up 3-1 in the fifth – to lead an 11-hit outing for the Bulldogs (14-23, 10-8 WCC), with Sam Stem and Tommy Eisenstat (1 R, 1 RBI) both adding two each as well. Connor Coballes, Brian Kalmer, Enzo Apodaca, Savier Pinales and Ezra Samperi rounded things out with a hit each.

RHP Ty Buckner posted his best outing of the season in his first start on the mound since Feb. 26, holding the Ducks to just one earned run on two hits over four innings and tossing three 1-2-3 innings in the process. RHP Kai Francis was solid in two frames of relief, allowing one more earned run on two hits but keeping GU's lead intact going into the seventh. But the Ducks jumped on RHP Payton Graham in the seventh, plating seven runs on six hits and two walks before the freshman righty could end the inning with a punchout. RHP Kolby Solomon made his GU debut in the eighth, but was tagged for two more runs on three hits. Graham was tagged for the loss, moving to 0-4 on the season.

The Zags have a chance to tie up the season series in tomorrow's game two, set for a 5:05 p.m. start.

THE ACTION
After a pair of hits from McGee and Stem but no score in the first frame, Zags put the first run on the board in the next frame with some small ball – after Apodaca drew a leadoff walk and stole second, a groundout from Pinales gave him time to reach third. After another grounder from Johnson, he managed to reach home on a wild pitch to put GU up 1-0. Samperi followed with a single and the second successfully stolen bag of the inning, but yet another groundout – this time from Coballes – halted the advance.

Buckner opened the second with his fourth consecutive retired batter, but UO's Tanner Smith tied things up on the Ducks' first hit in the next at-bat, slamming a solo shot to left field that made it a 1-1 ballgame. Buckner generated two more grounders – sandwiched by a single from Bennett Thompson – to strand him on base and keep things even.

GU continued to pressure Pace in the third, with Kalmer smacking a two-bagger to right and Stem following with a single to put runners at the corners with just one out on the board. Stem was picked off at first in a call that was reviewed and upheld for the second out, but that was all that Eisenstat needed, as the sophomore dropped a single into shallow center that pushed Kalmer across for a 2-1 advantage.

With the lead retaken, Buckner remained efficient, tossing two more 1-2-3 innings in succession to keep the Ducks' bats at bay as GU increased the lead to 3-1 with a fifth-inning solo homer from McGee – his fifth no-doubter in 14 starts so far this season.

Francis took the mound in the fifth and opened with two quick outs on ground balls, weathering a single and a wild pitch that moved Bryce Boettcher to second before ending the frame with another grounder.

But the Ducks rallied in the seventh after Graham entered the game, drawing a walk before a double and single in succession – all with nobody out – yielded two runs to give UO its first lead of the game, 4-3. They kept rolling with five more runs on four more hits before Graham could end the frame with a strikeout.

Back-to-back one-out singles from Eisenstat and Apodaca set up a sac fly from Pinales that cut the lead to five before a popup ended the inning, but the Ducks tacked on two more runs after Solomon's entry in the bottom of the frame off an RBI groundout and a solo homer. 

Donovan Ratfield was hit by a pitch to open the top of the ninth, but a fielder's choice knock from Marenco nullified the hit and a double play ball ended the game before GU could mount a response.

UP NEXT / FOLLOW THE ACTION
The Zags' second game with the Ducks is set for a 5:05 p.m. start on Wednesday. Live stats and streaming options are available on GoZags.com — follow @ZagBaseball on Instagram and Twitter for live updates, highlights and more.