EUGENE – Mitchell Verburg struck out Ryne Nelson on a 3-2 pitch with the bases loaded in the ninth, sending top-ranked Oregon State to the 2017 Pac-12 Conference Championship with a 5-4 win Friday night at PK Park.

The crown is the Beavers’ fifth since the then-Pac-10 Conference unified prior to the 1999 season, the most by any team over that stretch. Oregon State won in 2005, 2006, 2013 and 2014 prior to Friday night’s 2017 championship.

With the win, the Beavers sent Casey to his 1,000th win as a collegiate head coach. Now in his 30th year as a collegiate head coach, Casey, who has led the Beavers since 1995 – 23 seasons – has won 829 of those 1,000 victories at Oregon State.

Oregon loaded the bases, and Verburg, who earned his second save of the season, got the final two outs of the game.

Steven Kwan led Oregon State’s (40-4 overall, 23-3 Pac-12) offense with three RBI, including two on a double in OSU’s three-run fifth.

Drew Rasmussen started for the Beavers, scattering one hit and an unearned run in three innings. He walked two and struck out five in his first start of the season.

The Beavers chased Oregon (26-20, 9-14) ace David Peterson after five innings, the left-hander’s second-shortest outing of the season. He gave up four hits and five runs, walking four and striking out five. He was charged with the loss, dropping to 10-3 on the year.

Five Is The Most
As noted above, the championship is the Beavers’ fifth since the Pac-10 unified, which is now the most by any conference school. That surpasses Stanford and Arizona State, which each have four.

Casey 16th Current With 1,000
Head Coach Pat Casey became the third NCAA Division-I coach to reach 1,000 wins this season, joining Elliot Avent at North Carolina State and Brian Shoop from UAB. Casey is the 16th active D-I coach to win 1,000 games at the collegiate level. Of those 1,000, 829 have come in 23 seasons at Oregon State.

A Closer Look At Casey At Oregon State
Head Coach Pat Casey’s win was his 829th at Oregon State. He’ll take a 829-444-5 (.651) record into Saturday’s series finale. His 829 wins account for better than 36 percent of the Beavers’ 2,288 all-time program wins.

Civil War Series Win
Oregon State clinched a series victory over Oregon, with the win. In the process, Oregon State clinched a 2016-17 overall victory over Oregon in the Civil War Series, presented by PacificSource Health Plans, Spirit Mountain Casino, Safeway/Albertsons and Your Local Toyota Dealers.

40 Wins, Again
Oregon State’s win Friday night was the team’s 40th of the season, making the Beavers the second team in the nation to hit that plateau. It’s also the eighth time since 2005 that Oregon State has won 40 or more.

Another Win Streak
Oregon State’s win marked the team’s seventh straight, tying the Beavers with Kansas for the fourth-longest active streak in the nation.

Rasmussen’s Start
Drew Rasmussen’s start was his first since March 24, 2016 at California. The redshirt sophomore had pitched in two games leading up to Friday, going three innings, in facing USC and California.

Next Up
Oregon State concludes its three-game series with Oregon Saturday night at PK Park in Eugene. The Civil War, presented by PacificSource Health Plans, Spirit Mountain Casino, Safeway/Albertsons and Your Local Toyota Dealers, is scheduled for a 7:05 p.m. PT start. The game can be heard live on the Beaver Sports Network, TuneIn and OSUBeavers.com.