One of Oregon softball’s mottos this season has been to get runners on, get them over and get them in. The Ducks got runners on, they got them over but they could not get them in on Thursday.
The Ducks knew their opponents well, having lost two out of three games against Washington in the regular season. The Huskies got on the board in the third, adding to their lead in the seventh with a 2-run home run as the Ducks’ comeback in the final frame fell short and Oregon lost 3-1.
Pitchers duels have been a common occurrence for Oregon this year, and the Ducks’ Women’s College World Series opener was another one. Oregon’s ace Megan Kleist took on Washington’s Taran Alvelo in the circles, and both pitched dominant games.
Kleist pitched all seven innings, allowing four hits, walking three and striking out two. Alvelo also pitched all seven innings but allowed five hits, walked three and struck out three in the Huskies’ win.
Oregon’s base-stealing has been successful a majority of the time but back-to-back attempts from Shannon Rhodes and Mia Camuso were failed as both freshmen were caught at second.
Both teams’ defenses were solid, including a Nikki Udria diving catch in the sixth.

What a grab by @OregonSB shortstop Nikki Udria! #WCWS pic.twitter.com/lwAIgQDDoc
— NCAA Softball (@NCAAsoftball) June 2, 2017

The Ducks’ seventh inning rally only turned in one run but Mike White’s offense failed to add any more.
Oregon now plays a must-win game on Saturday at 11:30 a.m. PT.
Follow Shawn Medow on Twitter @ShawnMedow