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PORTLAND, Ore. --- Portland's Caleb Whalen continued his recent hot hitting with three hits, but the No. 25 Oregon Ducks would sneak by the Pilots 3-0 on the back end of a home-and-home series played on a picture-perfect Wednesday afternoon at Joe Etzel Field. Whalen, who had six RBI's at Oregon on Tuesday night, extends his current hitting streak to 10 games.
 
The Pilots (7-27) looked active at the plate early, getting runners on base during the first, third and fourth innings. Whalen was left stranded in the first after a one-out, infield single, and the Pilots left two on base in the third when Davis Tominaga roped a line drive to right field that was caught by Oregon's Tyler Baumgartner.
 
Then in the fourth, it was Cody Lenahan who was left at first base after a one-out single.
 
Oregon (24-10) starter Brando Tessar would settle in from there, holding the Pilots without a hit for the next three innings. Reliever Garrett Cleavinger would take over in the eighth inning, striking out the side, and closer Jake Reed notched his seventh save after allowing a single to Whalen in the ninth.
 
Tessar yielded just four hits, struck out eight and didn't issue a walk in 7.0 innings to improve to 2-0 on the year.
 
Portland starter Billy Sahlinger matched Tessar pitch-for-pitch during the first three innings before the Ducks were able to score on back-to-back doubles by Baumgartner and Mitchell Tolman in the top of the fourth inning.
 
The Ducks strung a couple more hits together in the top if the fifth inning to score two more and claim a 3-0 cushion. Nick Karaviotis brought in both runs in the fifth with a two-run single to center field.
 
Sahlinger (0-3) allowed all three runs on five hits in 4.2 innings. He fanned five and walked one before giving way to Chad Kjemhus with the bases loaded in the top of the fifth. Kjemhus calmly ended the threat and the inning by getting Kyle Garlick to pop out to short on the first pitch.
 
Kjemhus would cruise the rest of the way, surrendering just two hits, while striking out five in 4.1 innings.
 
The Pilots limited the Ducks to just seven hits overall, but Portland totaled just five hits.
 
The Pilots next welcome the San Diego Toreros to The Bluff for a three-game West Coast Conference series this weekend. Friday's opener is set for 3 p.m., while first pitch is slated for 1 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday.