The No. 23 Oregon Ducks (9-7) were unable to end the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic on a high-note, falling 6-0 to the Nebraska Cornhuskers (7-5). After a massive offensive outburst during day two of the Classic, the Ducks fell back to Earth. They managed just five hits in the shutout loss.
The Cornhuskers came out of the gates on a mission. Their first two batters, Billie Andrews and Peyton Cody, both hit singles to start the game. This gave Nebraska’s next pair of batters the freedom to do a sacrifice bunt and sac-fly to bring both home. Oregon was able to end the inning thanks to those two outs, but the damage had been done and the Ducks were in a 2-0 hole before they had even gotten a chance to pick up a bat.
A parade of walks got the bases loaded with just a single out in the bottom of the 1st, but the Cornhuskers were able to throw out Hanna Delgado at home and strike out a batter to end the inning. Despite getting four different players on base during the inning, Oregon did not record a hit.
A 1-2-3 inning in the top of the 2nd gave the Ducks a much-needed chance to respond after leaving three runners on base in the bottom of the 1st. However, despite earning another walk and getting a single from Kai Luschar to put runners on first and second, Oregon walked out of the inning with nothing to show for it, making it five runners left on base after just the 2nd inning.
The 3rd inning saw more damage be done to the Ducks’ chances. Nebraska’s Alina Felix hit a single, and was brought home right away by a two-run home run from Andrews. Morgan Scott, who started the game and recorded the loss, was pulled after allowing four runs in just 2.0 innings. Taylour Spencer took over and immediately allowed the Cornhuskers to get runners on first and third. However, Spencer was able to close out the inning without allowing the scoring margin to get any wider. The Ducks trailed 4-0 going into the bottom of the 3rd.
The trend of being unable to capitalize on runners on base continued for Oregon in the next few innings. Vallery Wong was stuck on first after a single in the 3rd. K.K. Humphreys hit a single, then got to third off of a single from Luschar, but both were left on base to end the 4th.
The top of the 5th saw Andrews get her third hit of the game, then stealing second to be in position to score when Ava Bredwell hit a double shortly after. Andrews had her fingerprints all over the game, having three hits, three runs, and two RBIs through just five innings of play. Oregon’s response in the bottom of the 5th was a 1-2-3 inning that did little to build momentum heading into the final stretch of the game.
The top of the 6th saw Nebraska’s Samantha Bland put the final nail in the coffin with a home run just four pitches into the inning. Two chances on offense, and just one hit later for the Ducks,the game ended in a shutout.
The pitchers for Oregon struggled to close out batters. Between the three pitchers who took the mound, the Ducks totaled as many strikeouts as home runs allowed – two. On offense, Oregon was able to get runners on thanks to being walked four times and hit by two pitches, but just five hits meant there was never enough momentum to help any runners get home. The Ducks ended the game with 10 runners left on base throughout the contest.
Luschar proved to be the lone bright-spot on offense. She got three hits in four at-bats and managed to steal a base. However, no Oregon hit went for any extra bases as the offense struggled to get anything going.
The Ducks will return home to host the Jane Sanders Classic next weekend. The first day for Oregon will see them take on the Mount St. Mary’s Mountaineers at 3:30 p.m. and the Maryland Terrapins at 6:00 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 29.
