STANFORD, Calif. – Luke Heimlich scattered four hits and a run in a complete-game effort and Nick Madrigal and KJ Harrison each tallied two hits to send top-ranked Oregon State to a 3-1 win over No. 11 Stanford Friday night at Sunken Diamond.
The victory marked Oregon State’s 17th straight – the longest active streak in the nation – and sent the Beavers to a 22-1 record and 7-0 mark in Pac-12 Conference play. Stanford, meanwhile, dropped to 14-7 overall and 2-2 in league play.
Oregon State has now won 11 straight at Sunken Diamond dating back to 2009.
Heimlich improved to 5-0 after throwing his second career complete game – his first since ending the 2016 season against UCLA. The left-hander struck out two, walked three and tossed 114 pitches, with 83 going for strikes.
Madrigal and Harrison both singled and doubled to pace the OSU offense, which ended the night with seven hits.
The Beavers scored first when Harrison doubled off the left field wall in the first, enabling Madrigal to score all the way from first. OSU added to the lead in the fifth when Trevor Larnach sharply doubled to left, bringing in Elliott Cary from third.
Stanford made it a one-run game in the bottom half of the fifth on a sacrifice fly by Matt Winaker.
Elliott Cary gave the Beavers an insurance run in the ninth, driving in Zak Taylor from third on a deep sac fly to center.
Oregon State chased Stanford starter Kris Bubic after the left-hander threw 118 pitches in just 5 2/3 innings. He allowed five hits, two runs, four walks and struck out six. He was charged with the loss, dropping to 2-4 on the year.
A Streak At Sunken
The win marked the 11th straight for the Beavers at Stanford’s Sunken Diamond, a streak that dates back to the 2009 season when OSU won 5-2 in the series finale to cap off the regular season. It was Oregon State’s 21st all-time win at Stanford, and OSU has won 13-of-16 at the Cardinal since 2005.
Keeping Pace With ’62
The Beavers’ win kept them on pace with the 1962 club, which also started the season 22-1 through the first 23 games of the year. That team went 23-1 before losing its second game of the season, 10-9 to Washington State.
Against Stanford, As Of Late
The win marked Oregon State’s 17th in the last 19 games against Stanford.
That Didn’t Take Long
Nick Madrigal singled on a blooper to left to open the game, stretching his hit streak to a career-long 15 games. He surpassed his previous long of 14 games as a freshman in 2016.
The First Inning, Again
Oregon State continued its first-inning dominance when KJ Harrison doubled off the wall in left. The Beavers have out-scored opponents, 29-3, in the first inning this season.
One-Out Shy
By chasing Stanford starter Kris Bubic in the sixth, the Beavers kept him from posting a quality start. Opponents have thrown just three this season, and Oregon State is 2-1 when that happens.
90 Feet Shy
Stanford got its leadoff batter on base in the eighth via a double, and the tying run managed to make it to third before Luke Heimlich induced Nico Hoerner and Quinn Brodey into a pair of groundouts to second. Stanford ended the game 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position, not including the fifth-inning sacrifice fly.
Next Up
Oregon State and Stanford continue the three-game series Saturday at Sunken Diamond. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m. PT. Listen to the game on 1490 The Score.
