CORVALLIS — It was, as Oregon State Beavers closer Bridger Holmes put it, a “bad idea.”

It was, as OSU Friday night starter Aiden May put it, “one of the worst things they could have done.”

It was, perhaps more than anything, a losing tactic.

After watching May overpower his potent lineup for five innings as if he were playing a video game, Oregon Ducks coach Mark Wasikowski resorted to a little gamesmanship, asking the umpire crew at Goss Stadium to check the Beavers’ ace for an illegal substance.

The ridiculous request backfired, May turned the subterfuge into motivation, and the ninth-ranked Beavers rode his dominance to a much-needed 2-0 victory over the 22nd-ranked Ducks Friday night in the opener of a three-game Pac-12 series in Corvallis.

May baffled the Pac-12’s second-best offense from his first pitch to his last, allowing just one hit and striking out a career-high 14 over eight impressive innings. It was a masterful performance in a heated rivalry matchup, and it came in the Beavers’ first conference outing since their forgettable sweep last weekend at the Cal Bears.

“Love the pitching performance, love the energy from our guys, from our fans,” OSU coach Mitch Canham said. “I just feel like Goss was really in a great place tonight.”

At the very least, a sellout crowd of 3,943 was fired up after watching Wasikowski ask umpires to check May. The Oregon State (32-9, 11-7 Pac-12) ace had been cruising before the ill-fated request, surrendering just one hit and one walk through five innings. But after throwing his warmup tosses in between the bottom of the fifth and top of the sixth innings, the umpire crew approached the mound to survey May’s glove. They found nothing but black leather. May found a little extra motivation.

Four pitches later, he fanned Oregon leadoff hitter Justin Cassella, and as the ball whipped around the horn, May glared at the Oregon dugout, tapped the palm of his glove and shouted a few choice words.

“I was just kind of asking them: ‘Where’s the sticky at?’” May said. “If anything, it’s a compliment from them … my stuff was feeling good tonight.”

He went on to retire seven batters in a row and nine of the final 10 he would face, allowing only one base runner over the final three innings. And that came via a throwing error by Mason Guerra on a routine grounder to third base.

May threw 114 pitches, including 83 strikes, mowing through the Ducks (28-13, 11-8) lineup with ease. He tossed 18 first-pitch strikes, had a no-hitter through 4 1/3 innings and allowed just four base runners in the game. Oregon managed only a fifth-inning infield single, a fourth-inning walk and a pair of base runners on OSU throwing errors.

When it was all said and done, May logged career-highs in strikeouts, innings and hits allowed as he improved to 3-0 and lowered his ERA to 3.63. It was the first time since May 10, 2022, that the Ducks were held to one hit, and the first time since March 12, 2023, they were held scoreless.

“Obviously, it’s nasty stuff,” Canham said. “It’s moving. It’s sinking. It’s sliding. It’s riding. It’s doing all that stuff. And sometimes (a substance check) can get in people’s heads. But we saw right away, he just used it as, ‘Hey, my stuff must be pretty good if they want to come out and see what’s going on.’”

When asked what pitches were working for him Friday, May replied: “everything.” But he also admitted that the superfluous substance check by Wasikowski — who has employed similar feeble tactics more than once this season — pushed him to another level.

After recording the final out in each of the final three innings, May danced and skipped off the mound toward the OSU dugout, raising his arms toward the night sky, tapping the palm of his glove and pointing in celebration. When he struck out the side in the eighth, May strutted off the mound, stopped short of his teammates along the third base line and flexed, releasing a monster scream.

“They can’t hit him,” Holmes said. “They know he doesn’t have any sticky stuff. His stuff’s too nasty. They couldn’t hit him, so they checked him. Obviously, it fired him up. I mean, you saw the reactions. He has the potential to do that every outing with the stuff he has. It’s the best stuff in college baseball. But putting it together like that and having the command he did today in a big game like this is huge for the team.”

Holmes’ performance wasn’t too shabby either. After coughing up his first three losses of the season last week — when he allowed two on walk-off homers — Holmes pitched a perfect ninth to earn his ninth save, needing just 11 pitches to retire the heart of Oregon’s lineup in order.

“That,” Canham said, “was a special performance right there.”

The Beavers’ lineup, meanwhile, needed just two swings to deliver a victory. Brady Kasper and Travis Bazzana belted solo home runs in the second and third inning, respectively, to give Oregon State an early 2-0 lead. May took over from there.

Wasikowski poked the bear and the bear clawed back.

“I taunted them a little bit,” May said, grinning, of his reaction to the substance check. “But I was trying to keep it nice and easy. Of course something like that is going to fire up the crowd, is going to fire me up, fire up the bench. It was just kind of a perfect storm and, maybe, one of the worst things they could have done in that moment.”

Next up: The Beavers and Ducks continue their three-game series Saturday night at 6:05 at Goss Stadium.

— Joe Freeman | jfreeman@oregonian.com | 503-294-5183 | @BlazerFreeman | Subscribe to The Oregonian/OregonLive newsletters and podcasts for the latest news and top stories.

An Oregon man who was convicted in the 1978 killing of a 16-year-old girl in Alaska was sentenced Friday to 50 years in prison.

Donald McQuade, 67, told Superior Court Judge Andrew Peterson that he maintains his innocence and did not kill Shelley Connolly, the Anchorage Daily News reported. McQuade in December was convicted of murder in the death of Connolly, whose body was found near a highway pullout between Anchorage and Girdwood in 1978.

OREGON MAN ARRESTED IN 1978 COLD-CASE MURDER OF ALASKA TEEN, AUTHORITIES SAY

McQuade said he intends to appeal his conviction.

Years after Connolly’s death, investigators developed a DNA profile from swabs collected from her body, and in 2019 turned to genetic genealogy testing, which involves comparing a DNA profile to known profiles in genealogical databases to find people who share the same genetic information. DNA testing was used to show McQuade matched the DNA profile, with police in Oregon obtaining the DNA by collecting cigarette butts that McQuade had discarded in public.

There was no indication McQuade knew Connolly prior to her death, assistant attorney general Erin McCarthy wrote in a sentencing memorandum.

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Prosecutors said the sentence provides some closure for friends and family. Connolly’s mother died before seeing a resolution.

Peterson acknowledged that any sentence would likely be a life sentence for McQuade. McQuade’s attorney, Benjamin Dresner, said he is in remission from advanced liver cancer. Dresner requested that McQuade receive the minimum sentence, or 20 years in prison.

Welcome back to Autzen Stadium, Oregon football legends Kenjon Barner and Troy Dye! The former Oregon football players will be guest coaches for the spring football game on Saturday, April 27th.

Three-time Super-Bowl champion Barner and current Los Angeles Chargers linebacker Dye are two of the most beloved Ducks ever. 

The Oregon spring football game kicks off at 1p.m. PT on Saturday. In Oregon coach Dan Lanning’s third Duck spring game, he invited Eugene native and fan-favorite artist Mat Kearney to perform a postgame concert on the field of Autzen Stadium. Fans will be invited down onto the field to enjoy the concert. 

Saturday will be the first chance for Ducks fans to see many new transfer players in an Oregon uniform. Quarterback Dillon Gabriel is a Heisman Trophy-contender and has a shot to make an immediate impact on the 2024 football team.  

It will also be the debut for wide receiver Evan Stewart, quarterback Dante Moore, cornerback Jabbar Muhammad and safety Kobe Savage, among others. 

The teams have been set and to no surprise, it is Gabriel leading the green team vs. Moore, who will QB the white team.

Barner played running back for the Ducks from 2009-2012. Under then-Oregon coach Chip Kelly, Barner earned consensus All-American honors in 2012. One of the most-memorable Barner moments came vs. USC in 2023, when the southern-California native set a school-record 321 rushing yards on a career-high 38 attempts and tied for a career-high five touchdowns.

A top contender for the 2012 Heisman Trophy, Barner played in the NFL from 2013-2022. Barner has won the Super Bowl three times (Philadelphia Eagles, New England Patriots, Tampa Bay Buccaneers.)

After four seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, Dye was recently signed by the Chargers. Dye will be reunited with former Duck teammate quarterback Justin Herbert.