By Dylan Farrell
The Ducks will be traveling to Palo Alto this Friday to take on the Stanford Cardinal in their final series of the season. Both teams have struggled mightily in conference play, posting similar records and both being recently swept by Washington. Oregon will enter this game on a higher note than the Cardinal however, boosted by an uplifting sweep against Oregon State last weekend. Oregon has an underwhelming 8-13 record in conference play, sitting at a win total equal to that of the Cardinal, though the latter has three fewer losses.
The key to this series for the Ducks is going to be on Stanford’s mound. The worst season-long ERA on the Cardinal’s pitching staff is 3.50, owned by Tatum Boyd. Conversely, Oregon’s best pitcher with respect to ERA is Stevie Hansen, who boasts a 3.25 on the year. Oregon will have to find a way to compensate for the less-than-favorable matchup on the mound one of two ways: find a way to hit consistently off a notoriously stingy bullpen or try to channel the energy that Makenna Kliethermes had last weekend against Oregon, when she allowed just three earned runs through the entire series.
If they choose to address the former concern more directly, don’t be surprised to see Vallery Wong or Tehya Bird hitting or even playing on first in place of KK Humphreys, who has called the base home since the start of the season. Humphreys has struggled immensely at the plate in conference play, posting a meager batting average of .196. Bird stepped up to the plate in place of Humphreys in Oregon’s final game vs. OSU last weekend. Wong is also one to look out for to get some reps on first given her use as a pinch hitter, but it seems that the coaches prefer Humphreys’ defensive play to the others, so we may see little to no change to the lineup for this series.
Potential Starting Pitchers — Oregon
Oregon’s starting pitchers for this series are pretty cut-and-dry, as the team has had no problem relying on Stevie Hansen’s at times otherworldly play to be the team’s number one arm on the mound. Hansen leads the team in ERA, WHIP, appearances, starts and innings pitched. She’s the most likely starter for Oregon in at least two of its three games this weekend. As for the second game, the most likely option seems to be Makenna Kliethermes. Kliethermes has consistently been Oregon’s number two on the mound this year, ranking second in every category that Hansen leads. The likelihood of her making an appearance is further buoyed by her exceptional play last weekend against OSU.
Potential Starting Pitchers — Stanford
The Cardinal have an exceptionally formidable pitching staff, boasting a cumulative ERA of 1.84 and a mind-boggling team WHIP of .98. The most likely option seems to be Alana Vawter, who posts an ERA of 1.68 through over 170 innings pitched across 29 appearances this season on 28 starts. The only player who makes remotely near as many appearances for the Cardinal is Regan Krause, who has 22 to her name and over 90 innings pitched alongside an ERA of 1.94. It’s unlikely any other pitchers will start for the Cardinal, as the next-most innings pitched on Stanford’s roster belongs to Molly Miller at just 33.2.
Projected Lineup — Oregon
- CF Hanna Delgado
- C Terra McGowan
- 2B Allee Bunker
- 3B Rachel Cid
- RF Ariel Carlson
- DP Vallery Wong
- SS Paige Sinicki
- 1B KK Humphreys
- LF Hannah Galey
Projected Lineup — Stanford
- CF Taylor Gindelsperger
- 2B Sydnee Huff
- SS Emily Young
- RF Kaitlyn Lim
- C Aly Kaneshiro
- 1B Emily Schultz
- LF Ellee Eck
- DP Caelan Koch
- 3B Sydney Steele
Keys to the Game
- Keep the offense hot, and find ways to get hits off these pitchers
- Help Kliethermes replicate last weekend’s performance
- Have Stevie Hansen just keep being herself
Final Thoughts
This series will likely be minimally consequential for either team and will mostly just settle seeding for regionals, which both teams are likely to make trips to. If Oregon finds a way to stabilize the mound for this series, they may do as well as 2-1, but I’m hesitant to call this a sweep in either direction.
Prediction: Oregon goes 2-1 vs. Stanford