Oregon baseball traveled to Ohio State over the weekend, and swept the Midwestern team. The Ducks are now 12-1 in their last 13 games and 40-11 overall.

Freshman Cole Irvin pitched his third complete game — shutting the Buckeyes out, 4-0 — and went on to receive the Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week award.

Oregon now plays most of their last games at home — a two-game series against Gonzaga, and then a three-game series with Oregon State over the weekend — before closing out their season with a single game in Corvallis and a road series with Utah.

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Chip Kelly decided to give former Duck Will Murphy another shot. The walk-on wide receiver was inked by him and the Eagles this morning, officially becoming part of the 90-man training camp roster.

Murphy’s most impressive season as a Duck came as a senior in 2012 when he had 19 catches for 181 yards.

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For the second-straight year, the Portland Winterhawks reached the Western Hockey League Finals. This time they came out with the Ed Chynoweth Cup. After losing game five in Portland to the Edmonton Oil Kings, the Winterhawks took care of business in Edmonton in game six, winning 5-1.

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University of Colorado quarterback Jordan Webb and former lineman Alexander Lewis were arrested Saturday on suspicion of second degree assault after a witness gave police a brutal account of events that took place early Saturday morning between Webb, Lewis and victim Lee Bussey.

Oregon freshman Cole Irvin has dazzled on the mound this season. Oregon head coach George Horton has repeatedly called the young pitcher his most consistent starter and bragged about his ability to throw deep into games.

Saturday was no exception as he performed brilliantly, getting his second complete-game shutout of the season and his third complete game. He gave up six hits and walked one while compiling seven strikeouts. The performance earned him his second Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week award.

He is second on the team in ERA at 2.62, and his 10-2 record and 92.0 innings pitched lead the team. Although he came to the Ducks with a lot of hype surrounding him, Horton claims Irvin has worked tirelessly to achieve the success he has seen this season.

No. 6 Oregon (34-11, Pac-12 16-5)baseball heads across the country to play a big series against Ohio State (32-15, Big Ten 14-7)this weekend. The series with the Big-10 school is the first of a home-and-home series that will be played over the course of two seasons.

While the team has a wealth of veteran leadership, non have experienced Ohio State baseball, and with the Ducks not being able to afford a series loss this late in the season, the series has major implications.

Oregon’s starters will be the usual weekend rotation of Tommy Thorpe on Friday, Cole Irvin on Saturday, and Jake Reed finishing things off on Sunday.

First pitch will be Friday at 4:05 p.m.

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No. 2 Oregon softball, after ending their six game winning streak with a loss to Arizona State, look to tie up the series Friday at 5p.m.

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As reported by Rob Moseley of The Register-Guard, Casey Martin will again try his hand at the U.S. Open.

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Former Portland Trail Blazer corner stone Brandon Roy was waved today by the Minnesota Timberwolves. He played one year of the two year, $10 million deal he signed last july, but only appeared in five games for the Timberwolves before he needed yet another knee surgery. The release from the team is likely to force retirement.

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In an effort to bring back an NBA team to Seattle, Chris Hansen and his group of investors have again raised their bid to buy the Sacramento Kings and move them to Seattle. The bid is now $625 million.

Oregon baseball, while full of talent, has not been without its struggles.

While the pitching has left teams bewildered all year and the Ducks’ defense ranked first in the nation for the majority of the season, often times they still struggled from the plate — especially at home in the pitcher-friendly PK Park. Ryon Healy, who leads the club in nearly every batting statistic, has made all the difference for Oregon, often doing the bulk of the offensive work on his own. However, he may have found relief from some of the scoring burden in an unlikely source: freshman Mitchell Tolman.

Tolman, a back-up third baseman, rode the bench for most of the season and didn’t get a shot until Ryan Hambright went down with an injury.

“It’s frustrating sitting on the bench when all of your friends are playing,” Tolman said.

When he finally did get out on the field, the result left something to be desired. He struggled in a series against UCLA, collecting four errors in two games — with UCLA scoring the game-winning run on his miscue.

“I was really frustrated with myself,” he said. “I felt I had let our team down.”

With help from Oregon head coach George Horton, he didn’t dwell on the errors. Horton told Tolman to remember that all mistakes of the day are forgotten when your head hits the pillow.

“I went home that Saturday night,” Tolman said. “I sat in my room and thought about (the error) and visualized it. I moved on after that.”

Moved on is an understatement.

Just over a week later, he did what the Ducks have struggled to do all year: He drove in runners in scoring position. And he made it look easy.

In six days, he had 14 RBI and hit .474. The Ducks won four of the five games during that span with him getting on base and collecting an RBI in each game. He had 12 RBI on the year before the week had started and is now tied for third most on the team.

The impressive play earned him not just a Pac-12 Player of the Week award, but he was also named the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Hitter of the Week.

“It’s a great honor,” he said. “It’s awesome knowing I’m the Pac-12 Player of the Week; but it’s a new week, and it’s time to do it again.”

His offensive explosion couldn’t have come at a better time. Oregon is entering their toughest and most important stretch of the season — the importance of which cannot be understated — with a road series against an unfamiliar Ohio State team, two games against Gonzaga and a series against Oregon State.

“Like I tell my players,” Horton said, “the pretenders disappear in May, and the contenders appear in May.”

He couldn’t be happier with Tolman coming alive late in the season, and not just for the team’s success but also for the success of Tolman, calling it “an amazing feat for a freshman athlete.”

“He’s a great story,” Horton said. “The maturity and what he’s been able to accomplish is beyond a freshman.”

As expected, freshman Mitchell Tolman won Pac-12 Player of the Week honors.

Over the past week, he hit .474 (9-19), walked three times and drove in 14 runs in five games, two against Seattle and three against Washington State. All five games were on the road, with Oregon taking four of the five.

He reached base and collected an RBI in each of the five games with most coming at opportune moments, helping the Ducks ensure a victory. His most impressive performance came in the first game against Seattle last Tuesday, when he went 3-4, driving in seven runs. It was the most RBI in a single game since Jack Marder had eight on March 9, 2010.

While Tolman was rewarded for his effort with the award, Oregon head coach George Horton also deserves credit for sticking with the third baseman through some sloppy play. Less than two weeks ago Tolman tallied four errors in two games against UCLA, no doubt part of the reason Oregon went 1-2 in the series.

With the errors behind him, he has emerged as a crucial member of a team that is fighting for the Pac-12 title with state-rival Oregon State. If he can keep it up down the stretch of the season, he, along with Ryon Healy and Scott Heineman, could provide the much-needed offense for Oregon to challenge in the postseason.

It look 11 innings, but No. 6 Oregon got the sweep in Pullman to keep them vying for the Pac-12 title and an opportunity to host regional play.

Scott Heineman led Oregon, going 3-6 from the plate. Mitchell Tolman kept up his RBI streak, going 2-5 while driving in a run. It was his 13th RBI in the past week. J.J. Altobelli also had a strong game, going 2-3 with an RBI.

Jake Reed, who started for Oregon, had a strong outing, going seven innings while giving up two earned runs on five hits and striking out seven.

Christian Jones came in for the eighth, allowing just one hit. Jimmie Sherfy was in to close out the ninth but faltered giving up a run, allowing Washington State to tie the game at 3-3. It was Sherfy’s first blown save of the season and sent the game into extra innings.

Garrett Cleavinger came in to pitch the 10th, striking out two and getting the win. Darrell Hunter threw the 11th inning and gave up two hits before getting the save for Oregon.

Turning point. With two outs in the 11th, Tolman got on base with a single. Heineman then singled to center, allowing Tolman to reach third. When WSU’s Austin Pernell committed a fielding error by letting the ball roll past time, Tolman took off for home plate to score and give Oregon a 4-3 victory.

On the horizon. Oregon picks up this weekend with a three game series with Ohio State in Columbus. The first game will be Friday at 4 p.m.

Oregon got its second-straight win over Washington State Saturday with help from first baseman Ryon Healy, who went 2-for-4 with a RBI off his tenth home run of the season. With the 6-3 win, Oregon improves to 36-11, 18-5 in the Pac-12.

The Ducks hit well overall, compiling 12 hits courtesy of nine batters. J.J. Altobelli led Oregon going 3-4 with a RBI.

Cole Irvin (9-2) got the start for the Ducks, and although it wasn’t his most impressive outing, he went seven innings. Irvin gave up six hits and three runs, two earned, to get the win.

As coach George Horton has become accustomed to, the Oregon bullpen was stingy once they got in the game, denying Washington State a hit. Garrett Cleavinger and Jimmie Sherfy were both used, each going an inning.

Turning Point. Oregon held a 4-3 lead going into the eighth inning, but pulled away on a RBI double to left-center field from Scott Heineman, scoring Healy.

Oregon pushed the lead to three in the ninth when Mitchell Tolman drove in yet another run, this time a sacrifice fly to score Altobelli. The RBI was his 13th this week.

On the Horizon. Oregon will attempt to sweep the Cougars on Sunday in the final game of the series. Jake Reed will take the mound for Oregon. First pitch will be thrown at noon.

No. 11 Oregon took the first game against Washington State, winning 5-3. With the win, Oregon is 35-11,17-5 in the Pac-12.

Tommy Thorpe took the mound for Oregon, going six-and-a-third innings while giving up seven hits and three runs, two earned. Darrell Hunter came in in the seventh as relief, throwing the rest of the inning. Garrett Cleavinger pitched the eighth, striking out all three batters faced and picking up the win. Jimmie Sherfy closed out the ninth. The three relievers combined to pitch a hitless two-and-two-thirds innings.

Mitchell Tolman again led the Ducks, getting them on board with an RBI bunt single in the first and then a two-RBI single in the third. Tolman finished with three RBI, giving him 12 in the past three games and a great shot at winning Pac-12 Player of the Week honors.

Brett Thomas hit 4-5, scoring twice. Aaron Payne also had a productive game, going 2-3 with three runs scored.

Turning Point. The game was tied in the top of the ninth as Ryon Healy walked to the plate. Healy shot one past the short stop, allowing Thomas to score. Tolman came up next and was walked to load the bases. Then Scott Heineman drove in Payne to give the Ducks a two-run lead.

On the Horizon. Oregon and Washington State play the second of three games Saturday at 2 p.m. Cole Irvin will get the start for the Ducks.

The Oregon Twilight kicks off today at 3:40 p.m. featuring Olympian Galen Rupp, among others.

Oregon football players B.J. Kelley, Dior Mathis, and De’Anthony Thomas will be running the 100 meters.

As the Oregonian’s Ken Goe reports, a late change has moved Rupp from the 800 to the 3,000.

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Oregon baseball opens up a full series against Washington State today at 6 p.m. A full preview can be found here.

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Michael Wallace of ESPN.com reports that sources have confirmed that LeBron James will indeed win the NBA MVP. The award will be his second straight and fourth overall.

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Luol Deng will not be on the floor for the Chicago Bulls tonight when they take on the Brooklyn Nets in a dramatic game seven due to a flu, possibly meningitis, that is so severe it prompted a spinal tap.

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Jeremy Lin, after missing two games with a chest bruise, has been activated for tonight’s game six between the Houston Rockets and the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Thunder won the first three games but have since lost two straight. If the Rockets are able to win the series they would become the first-ever team to come back from a three-game deficit and only the second-ever eight seed to win a playoff series, joining the Golden State Warriors who beat Dallas in the 2007 NBA Playoffs.

The Ducks look to right the ship after Wednesday’s loss to Seattle with a series on the road against Washington State.

No. 11 Oregon will play three games against WSU, the first coming Friday at 6 p.m.

Tommy Thorpe (5-4, 2.73) will get the start for Oregon on Friday, facing lefty Joe Pistorese (4-3, 2.40) for WSU.

Cole Irvin will throw Saturday, a 2 p.m. start, and Jake Reed will take the final outing Sunday at noon.

With the postseason looming and Oregon State still holding an advantage in the pennant race, the Ducks can’t afford many of the hiccups Oregon fans have seen lately, such as error-filled games and struggles at the plate. A series win against WSU is not only crucial for their Pac 12 title aspirations, but also for the mentality of the team as the postseason nears.