The Oregon Ducks softball team defeated the Utah Utes 5-2 at Jane Sanders Stadium, in their Sunday matinee matchup. The Ducks extended their winning streak to eleven and improved their record to 20-1 on the season.
Brooke Yanez took the mound seeking her ninth win of the season after pitching a complete-game shutout in the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader. Yanez ran into trouble early as she conceded a single to Julia Noskin. The struggles turned into a Utes run as Alyssa Barrera singled through the right side driving in Noskin to give Utah a 1-0 lead.
In the bottom of the first inning, the Oregon Ducks answered the Utes’ hot start. Leadoff hitter Haley Cruse took the fourth pitch of her at-bat over the left field wall for her fourth home run of the season.
The Ducks extended the lead as Alyssa Brito took Mariah Lopez over the left field fence for a two-run dinger. Allee Bunker scored on Brito’s home run after she reached base on a single. Brito leads the Ducks with eight home runs this season.
Utah went to the bullpen early, as right-handed pitcher Sydney Sandez entered in the second inning. Sandez took control of a messy situation with the bases loaded. She found her way out of the jam, forcing Rachel Cid to ground into a double play.
Sandez and Yanez sustained a pitcher’s duel until the top of the fifth inning. With two outs, Haley Denning reached on a fielder’s choice. After Denning stole second base on a wild pitch, Noskin came through for the Utes again. She singled past Mya Felder and Denning scored to make it 3-2.
Similar to the first inning, the Ducks fed off Utah’s scores with runs of their own. Bunker started the rally with a single to center field, followed by Brito hitting a double into the gap in left-center. Terra McGowan expanded their lead with a two-run single to make it 5-2 before the Utes found their way out of the inning.
After a shorter outing against Sacramento State, head coach Melyssa Lombardi kept Yanez on the mound through the sixth inning. She had to work her way out of a jam to make it through the stretch. With runners on first and second and a full count to Elicia Espinosa, Yanez found the edge of the zone and caught Espinosa looking. Yanez had seven strikeouts through six innings.
The Ducks failed to cushion their lead in the bottom of the sixth, so they took a three-run lead into the top of the seventh searching for three final outs. Lombardi refused to pull her starter so Yanez would have to get her ninth win in a complete game.
The first batter of the seventh was A.J. Militello, who was caught looking for a strikeout on a 3-2 pitch that caught the bottom left corner. Yanez forced Denning to ground to second bringing up Noskin, the Utes’ hottest batter. Yanez couldn’t be phased as she struck out Noskin to end the ball game and earn her ninth victory of the season.
Yanez starred for Oregon. She pitched a complete game, conceding five hits and two runs while striking out nine Utes batters. Brito continued her breakout season from the cleanup spot, leading the team with two RBIs and a run scored. Brito improved her batting average to .422 and the Ducks improved to 20-1 on the season.
