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Published Tuesday June 21, 2005 Beavers say elimination loss to Baylor unbearable BY STEVEN PIVOVAR
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER

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Seeing its season end on a "50-foot single" rather than a 500-foot homer just added to Oregon State's frustration Monday at the College World Series.

The Beavers' stay in Omaha came to an end when Baylor's Mike Pankratz blooped a single in between first and second to drive in the winning run in a 4-3, 10-inning victory at Rosenblatt Stadium.

"I would have rather have had someone hit it over the scoreboard than to give up a hit like that," Oregon State pitcher Kevin Gunderson said. "It's unfortunate that we lost like that, but the Beavers will be back."

Oregon State's first trip to Omaha in 53 years ended when Baylor strung together the only three hits it got in 4¹/₃ innings off Gunderson, the Beavers' ace reliever. Josh Ford opened the Bears' 10th with an infield single that bad-hopped Oregon State shortstop Darwin Barney.

A sacrifice advanced Ford to second, and he moved to third when Reid Brees squirted a single through the left side of the infield. Gunderson, a sophomore left-hander who came into the game with a 6-3 record and 14 saves, struck out Kevin Russo before surrendering the fateful hit to Pankratz.

"It's tough to lose a game on a 50-foot single," Gunderson said. "I got the pitch in on his hands, but unfortunately, with an aluminum bat, he got away with it. If it's wood, it might have broke his bat. But you have to give him credit for putting the ball in play and finding a hole."

First baseman Andy Jenkins agreed. He watched helplessly as Pankratz's poke dropped between him and second baseman Chris Kunda, barely making the outfield grass.

"It didn't sound real sweet off the bat, obviously, and I thought it was a great pitch," Jenkins said. "I knew when it was up in the air I really had no shot at it. I was hoping Kunda could make a play on it but at the same time, the guy just put it in a perfect place."

While the Beavers will always remember Pankratz's hit, they'll also never forget the lack of execution that contributed to close losses to Tulane and Baylor. The 1952 team also went 0-2 in the school's only other CWS appearance.

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