Jane Sanders Stadium was the site for Game 1 of the NCAA Softball Tournament’s Eugene Super Regional as the No. 16-seeded Oregon Ducks (52-8, 19-3 Big Ten) took on the Liberty Flames (50-13, 23-3 C-USA) on Friday with a 7:00 p.m. first pitch.
In the top of the eighth with the score knotted at two, senior left-handed pitcher Staci Chambers was in the circle for Oregon. Chambers had pitched two scoreless innings and had notched two outs in the frame already. With another out, it would make it 6 ⅔ of straight scoreless softball from the senior dating back to her last outing on Sunday against Stanford.
Then, confusion struck the fans at the sold-out Jane. Umpires had huddled together, then announced to the crowd that the Liberty runner on first was out. Spectators rejoiced as talk went around about what had just happened. When the dust settled, it was made clear that the pinch runner the Flames used after their two-out single was not on the lineup card, resulting in an out that put Oregon up to bat with a chance to walk it off. The Ducks would seize that chance as they sealed the 3-2 win to put them one victory away from the College World Series.
“Love the absolute grit and reliance, just seeing the character of this team show up throughout the entire game,” Oregon head coach Melyssa Lombardi said. “We had some things early on that didn’t go our way, and it didn’t matter. We just kept fighting and fighting. We talk a lot about how we don’t know exactly how we’re going to win or what the game is going to look like, but we know that we’re going to find a way.”
Leading the way for the Ducks’ offense was senior left fielder Kai Luschar, who was 3-for-4 with an RBI.
Junior right-handed pitcher Lyndsey Grein got the nod to start for the Ducks as she looks to continue her dominant season, bolstered by her 2.15 ERA.
The Ducks were coming off a spectacular regional finish against the Stanford Cardinal. That showdown featured senior designated player Dezianna Patmon launching a walk-off three-run homer that propelled the Ducks to the super regionals and lit up Jane Sanders Stadium.
Action would halt until the top of the third when Liberty sought blood as they got the first two runners on in the frame off a walk and a single. This prompted a pitching change for the Ducks as junior right-handed pitcher Elise Sokolsky stepped in for Grein (2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 0 Ks and 55 TP). Sokolsky manoeuvred around the runners thanks to a sweet double play from sophomore third baseman Katie Flannery.
After almost three shutout innings from both sides, Oregon finally broke through in the bottom of the third after freshman right fielder Ayanna Shaw reached on an error with one out. Luschar would make the Flames pay for the mistake as she knocked a triple to right-center field that scored Shaw from first. The Oregon faithful exploded as the Ducks notched the first run of the game.
“I really don’t know if I was trying to do a power slap in the moment,” Luschar said. “But sometimes, if I just have a good enough hole in the pitches there, I’ll just let it rip, and it just happened. I wasn’t really looking for it, it’s just the way it worked out.”
They weren’t done yet, though. With two outs, freshman first baseman Stefini Ma’ake blooped a single to left field, and Luschar was able to saunter home to give the Ducks a 2-0 lead after three innings.
Liberty would get one back immediately in the top of the fourth when senior center fielder KK Madrey singled and came around to score thanks to a double from sophomore left fielder Paige Doerr. This cut the Oregon lead in half as the score sat at 2-1.
Both offenses went cold again until the top of the sixth when the Flames were able to tie it up. Doerr picked up a single to lead off the frame and advanced to second on a sac-bunt. She moved over to third due to a wild pitch, then came across to score thanks to a two-strike, two-out single from freshman pinch hitter Alexia Carrasquillo.
The new 2-2 game introduced a fresh pitcher for the Ducks as Chambers checked in for Sokolsky (3.2 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 K and 64 TP).
The pitchers' duel continued into extra innings when Chambers held strong to put up a key zero in the top of the eighth.
Then came the bottom of the frame. Senior center fielder Kedre Luschar singled up the middle to put the winning run on first. Luschar then displayed the speed to take second off the steal, then third off a sac-fly from Ma’ake. Senior shortstop Paige Sinicki worked a tough walk to put runners on the corners and stole second for herself. With the double play off the table, the Ducks were in prime position to take the win.
Who else would it be than Patmon?
On a 1-1 count, Patmon sliced a line drive up the middle past the second baseman to easily score Luschar. Jane Sanders Stadium erupted yet again as Patmon made it back-to-back walk-off wins for her Oregon squad.
“It’s always important,” Patmon said. “Every win is important, especially in the postseason. We’re just trying to play together as long as we can. I’m trying to just do my job and keep us in it.”
Chambers' final line: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K and 35 TP.
Oregon will turn right back around to The Jane to face the same Flames on Saturday, May 24. That critical affair will take place at 4:00 p.m. as the NCAA Softball postseason continues along, and the Ducks will look to punch their ticket to Oklahoma City.