Missy Coe crushed the softball a good 240 feet, all the way into the parking lot of the Outdoor Program’s garage.
In fact, the fences seemed very close for both of the No. 18 Oregon softball team’s catchers Tuesday afternoon. Coe, a sophomore, and Kelly Planche, a junior, hit big home runs to lead the Ducks to a pair of wins.
Most of the balls hit by the home team were at least to the warning track as the offense clicked on all cylinders.
The Ducks (32-18 overall, 4-6 Pacific-10 Conference) swept Portland State (20-30) for the second time this year, using the eight-run rule in the first game (8-0), and riding the Coe bomb in the second to a 3-2 win.
In that second game Coe’s blast came in the bottom of the fifth inning with the Ducks already ahead 1-0, proving to be the difference in the game.
“Connie [McMurren] told me I was going to get a hit and I told her I would do it because we needed runs,’” Coe said. “Anything hit hard — I’m going to be happy.”
Freshman Alyssa Laux started the rally with a base hit to set the table for Coe’s towering shot that wrapped around the right-field foul pole.
Oregon got on the board first in the fourth when junior Triawn Custer opened the inning with a frozen-rope double off the top of the left-field fence. She advanced to third on consecutive walks to Lindsey Welch and Jill Robinson.
The Ducks had the bases loaded with no one out but were only able to get Custer home on a wild pitch.
Portland State made the contest close in the top of the sixth when Jessica Guerrero hit a two-run homer to close the lead to one. But McMurren was able to shut down the Vikings offense the rest of the way to pick up her 13th win.
“She gave up eight hits, scattered them out there,” head coach Rick Gamez said. “She’s not at her best right now, but we’ll take the win from her.”
The first game of the double dip was a hitting clinic by the Ducks, who used eight hits to score eight runs and get the win via the eight-run rule in the bottom of the sixth.
The game was called after the Oregon rally. Freshman Andrea Vidlund sparked the inning with a lead-off single, and the Ducks loaded the bases with two walks and a wild pitch.
Custer then scorched a single right back through the infield to score two runs and end the game.
Oregon added single runs in the fourth and fifth inning, but the big inning for the home team came in the second. And Custer again was involved in the rally.
Custer drew a free pass to open the inning and Vidlund added a base hit to set the table for Planche. Planche crushed her second round-tripper deep over the left-field fence to put Oregon in the lead for good, 3-0.
“It was a pretty fat pitch, and I was looking for something inside and turned on it,” said Planche. “We’re always looking to get on a roll early in the day, especially playing a doubleheader.”
Outside the hitting prowess on the day, the Ducks got another good outing from Vidlund who started the first game in the circle. Vidlund (16-4) pitched shut-out ball, only allowing Portland State seven hits and one walk while striking out five.
“Andrea threw the ball well, which she has done the last couple of times out,” Gamez said.
Oregon will continue its current homestand this weekend when they play host to No. 2 Arizona and No. 4 Arizona State.