The No. 3 ranked Oregon Ducks softball team took an 11-game winning streak into Friday’s doubleheader as they began a three-game series against LMU in Eugene.
On the mound for the Ducks was left-hander Brooke Yanez, who’s been dominant this season with a 1.49 ERA. She set down the first six batters she faced, three via the strikeout as she continued to roll.
The Ducks hit the ground running in the bottom of the first, as Haley Cruse and Hanna Delgado hit back-to-back doubles to put them ahead 1-0. With runners on the corners and one out, Mya Felder hit into a rare 6-2-5 double play, as the LMU shortstop threw Delgado out at home and the catcher threw Alyssa Brito out at third.
With two outs in the bottom of the second and Terra McGowan on first, Lexi Wagner smacked a triple to right field to score McGowan. Cruse followed with an infield single that was mishandled by the shortstop to extend the lead to 3-0.
Yanez allowed her first baserunner in the third, a leadoff walk, but she struck out the next two and the runner was caught stealing to end the frame.
Brito added another run in the bottom of the third with a solo homer. With one out, LMU made their first pitching change. The new pitcher was rudely greeted with a walk and a three-run homer by Maddie Hopper that sent the Ducks out soaring to a 7-0 lead.
With the lopsided score, Raegan Breedlove replaced Yanez after three hitless innings. She pitched a perfect fourth inning to hold the 7-0 lead.
The Ducks loaded the bases with no outs in the fourth, and pinch-hitter Vallery Wong doubled to the wall to bring home three more runs, making it 10-0. Singles from Rachel Cid, Shaye Bowden and Wagner brought in another three as the Ducks led 13-0 with still no outs in the fourth inning.
A bases loaded walk brought in a 14th run as the Ducks’ bench stepped up. It mercilessly ended there, as 13 Ducks batted in the inning.
The Lions recorded their first hit of the game against Breedlove to start the fifth, and a walk and a hit by pitch loaded the bases. An error by the second baseman and a groundout brought in two runs, but Breedlove closed it out to cap off the 14-2 run rule victory after five innings.
The Ducks are now 21-1 and have a 12-game winning streak. Game two of Friday’s doubleheader will begin at approximately 3:30 p.m.