CORVALLIS, Ore. >> Brian Duroff drove in three runs with a seventh-inning homer and Daniel Guevara Castro struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth as Saint Mary’s sent top-seeded tournament host Oregon State to the losers’ bracket with a 6-4 victory in the nightcap of the Corvallis Regional on Friday.

No. 4 seed Saint Mary’s (36-24) played No. 3 seed Southern California on Saturday. That game was not final by the Independent Journal’s press time.

The Gaels, whose only other NCAA Tournament appearance came in 2016, picked up their first tournament victory in program history.

Saint Mary’s grabbed a 3-0 lead in the first inning off Beavers starter Eric Segura (8-2), who retired just one hitter and was charged with three runs on two singles, a walk and three hit batters.

Aiva Arquette had a two-out single in the third off Gaels starter Dylan Delvecchio (7-3) and Gavin Turley followed with a homer to get Oregon State within 3-2.

Duroff gave Saint Mary’s a four-run cushion when he homered with two outs off Laif Palmer.

Oregon State has advanced to seven College World Series in 24 NCAA Tournament appearances — most recently in 2018 when the Beavers won it for the third time. They won back-to-back titles in 2006-07.

LSU Shreveport is first team on record to go unbeaten >> LSU Shreveport became the first college baseball team on record to go unbeaten, finishing 59-0 when it won the NAIA championship in Lewiston, Idaho.

The Pilots’ perfect season ended with a 13-7 victory over Southeastern (Florida) on Friday night and gave the 10,000-student school in northwest Louisiana its first national title in any sport.

For 25 years LSU Shreveport has been one of the top programs in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, which governs sports at 241 mostly small colleges across the country.

Golf

Stark takes 1-shot lead into final round of U.S. Women’s Open >> Maja Stark could tell pretty early that Erin Hills would provide much more of a challenge than it had in the first two days of the U.S. Women’s Open.

Yet she found a way to avoid the mistakes that befell so many other competitors during a brutal third round. Now the 25-year-old from Sweden is in position to earn the $2.4 million prize in the biggest event of the women’s golf season.

Stark shot a 2-under 70 to give her a 7-under 209 total and a one-shot advantage heading into the final round Sunday. Julia Lopez Ramirez of Spain was second after a 68, the best score of the day.

Scheffler surges into lead at the Memorial >> Scottie Scheffler was at his best on a tough day at Muirfield Village, opening with 13 straight pars and then pouring it on at the end for a 4-under 68 that gave him a one-shot lead over Ben Griffin at the Memorial.

Scheffler birdied four of his last five holes, finishing with a birdie from just inside 15 feet. He took the lead when Griffin missed a 3-foot par putt on the final hole.

Soccer

Girma returns in U.S. women’s win over China >> Naomi Girma returned to the national team and Lo’eau LaBonta became the oldest player to make her international debut for the U.S. in a 3-0 win over China.

Catarina Macario, Sam Coffey and Lindsey Heaps scored while goalkeeper Phallon Tullis-Joyce got her second shutout in as many appearances.

Cycling

Yates closes in on Giro d’Italia title >> Simon Yates produced one of the greatest rides of his career, up one of cycling’s most grueling climbs, to all but win the Giro d’Italia.

Yates had started the penultimate stage in third, one minute and 21 seconds behind previous leader Isaac Del Toro. But the British cyclist launched a solo attack on the beyond-category climb to Colle delle Finestre — the same mountain that spelled heartbreak for him seven years ago — to ride clear of his overall rivals.

The 32-year-old Yates, who won the Spanish Vuelta in 2018, was openly sobbing after he crossed the line more than five minutes ahead of Del Toro.