EUGENE, Ore. — The No. 14 Oregon Ducks had not lost a series all season, but after dropping Friday’s game to Ohio State, their streak was in jeopardy. They turned things around on Saturday, winning 13-6. Needing another strong performance, they took care of business on Sunday, winning 8-0 to capture a Senior Day victory in their final regular-season game at Jane Sanders Stadium.
The Ducks took control early, as they drew first blood on an Amari Harper homer in the first inning. They followed it up with a Kaylynn Jones homer in the second, her fifth homer of the season. Oregon also had two separate RBIs in that inning, one being a sac fly. Those RBIs, scored by Shaw and Flannery, extended the team’s lead to 4-0.
Ohio State was able to stop the bleeding, but Oregon had firm control just thirty minutes into the contest. The Buckeyes severely struggled offensively, as they couldn’t muster a single hit through the first three innings. In the fourth, Parisien broke the ice with a single. But they were unable to build on it, as the Ducks quickly executed a double play to close out the half inning.
Oregon continued to pour it on with an Emma Cox home run, the team’s third homer in as many innings. Cox had a particularly strong weekend.
“Emma, what an unbelievable weekend, all weekend long,” head coach Melyssa Lombardi said of her catcher.
In the fourth, senior Elon Butler had her second RBI to put the Ducks up 6-0. She leads the team in RBIs, entering Sunday’s contest with 54 on the season. A double RBI later in the inning by Harper put Oregon up eight going into the fifth inning, where they won via mercy rule.
The Ducks were very productive on offense, as Jones scored twice and six other runners found home plate. Junior pitcher, Taylour Spencer, dominated, throwing six strikeouts in four innings pitched and only surrendering one hit. She relieved Lyndsey Grein after just one inning, despite Grein’s strong performance to start the game.
With Sunday’s win, Oregon clinches the series 2-1 and improves to 38-10 overall and 18-3 in the Big Ten. The team sits at third in the conference standings, only trailing Nebraska and UCLA, the latter of which the Ducks will face in their season finale next week.
With an RPI rank of ninth, Oregon is in a strong position for hosting a regional (top 16) and potentially a super-regional (top eight). If it can win next week’s series and then advance deep in the Big Ten tournament, there would be a slim chance to move into the top eight. Even with a loss to UCLA, Oregon is almost certain to enter the postseason with a top 16 rank thanks to its impressive record in conference.
“Senior Day is emotional, but we also know it’s not the last time here,” Lombardi said in reference to an eventual postseason series.
A few minutes later, when discussing the team’s outlook and preparation, she emphasized the importance of a good showing in the conference tournament for NCAA seeding.
The Ducks will conclude the regular season in Los Angeles next week, in a matchup of two of the top three teams in the Big Ten. After that, they will head to College Park, Maryland for the conference tournament.