The Oregon Ducks (14-9, 2-1 Pac-12) defeated the No. 15 Cal Golden Bears (21-4, 1-2 Pac-12) 5-2 in the final game of the first series of Pac-12 conference play. Oregon relied on its offensive pressure and strong pitching to keep Cal at bay throughout the game.
“You wanna start that first weekend off and get a series win,” Melyssa Lombardi, head coach of the team, said. “You go into every series and you want to get game one. We didn’t, we let it go, and we got game two and got game three.”
Elise Solosky got off to a strong start. She made it through the first two innings facing just six batters. After allowing a hit in the first inning, the Ducks were able to turn a double-play to keep Cal from gaining any momentum.
“I think our defense set the tone for the game today,” Lombardi said. “[The double play] was a huge momentum shift for them, and seeing the momentum go from them to us. And I just felt like from there we just carried the momentum the rest of the way.”
Solosky saw the first blemish on her stellar day in the top of the third inning. She allowed three hits, giving the Golden Bears a chance to open the scoring with the bases loaded. The Oregon defense was able to close out the inning while keeping all runners from getting home to keep the game scoreless.
The Ducks got their offense going in the bottom of the third. Kai Luschar and Ariel Carlson both got on base with a single, then stole second and third on the same play. This set up Alyssa Daniell to bring Luschar home with a bunt to open the scoring in the game.
“It’s really fun,” Luschar said about the team’s ability to steal bases. “You can just tell the other team gets nervous when most of our team gets on base because we all create chaos.”
The parade around the bases for Oregon did not stop there. A walk loaded the bases for the Ducks before KK Humphreys hit a deep sac-fly that allowed Carlson to get home for the second Oregon run of the inning. Cal was finally able to end the inning, but not before falling behind 2-0.
Solosky walked the Golden Bears’ Acacia Anders to start the fourth inning before being replaced by Morgan Scott on the mound. A couple of sacrifices helped Anders get home, which gave Solosky a final statline of four hits and one run allowed through 3.0 innings. Oregon was able to keep its lead intact 2-1 after the score.
The Ducks were able to load the bases in the bottom of the fourth with just one out in the inning. A fielding error allowed Ayanna Shaw to get home, and the other runners, Hanna Delgado and Luschar, to advance. A wild pitch that allowed Delgado to make it home was the latest in a string of missteps from Cal that allowed Oregon to expand its lead. The Golden Bears were mercifully able to end the inning after giving up two runs and recording a pair of errors to give the Ducks a 4-1 lead.
Oregon continued that momentum into the fifth inning, scoring another run with Emma Kauf getting home after a single from Delgado to make the score 5-1 in a dominating performance for the Ducks.
That dominance was briefly interrupted in the top of the sixth by a home run from Cal’s Elon Butler, her third homer of the series. The home run was just the second hit allowed for Scott, who managed to close out the Golden Bears without any other hiccups. She finished the day with two hits and one run allowed through her 4.0 innings.
“I think just being ready to go no matter what, just keeping that same mentality,” Scott said about her ability to come in and finish games. “And knowing that what I have is gonna work. Even if it’s not the best that day, as long as I have my other stuff, I’m still going to be dominant.”
Kauf, Luschar and Carlson each recorded a pair of hits, with all three getting home once in the game. After being out-hit in the first two games of the series, the Ducks were able to hold an 8-7 advantage in the category in the final matchup.
The Ducks will be on the road to take on the Utah Utes on Friday, March 15 at 3:00 p.m.
