After splitting their double header on Friday against Stanford, the Ducks won 7-4 in game three of the four-game series against the Cardinal on Saturday afternoon in Eugene.
Following an uneventful first inning, the Cardinal got in rhythm at the top of the second. A single and a walk placed two runners on base. Emily Young and pinch runner Kaitlyn Lim both scored on errors to take an early 2-0 lead.
Stanford continued its momentum into the top of the third as Taylor Gindlesperge and Eleni Spirakis both singled, placing runners on first and second base. The Cardinal’s Aly Kaneshirothen doubled to left center for an RBI as Spirakis advanced to third and Gindlesperge scored, increasing the early lead to 3-0.
The Ducks answered in the bottom third, exploding for six runs on four hits.
To open the inning, Haley Cruse singled, Hanna Delgado walked and Alyssa Brito singled to load the bases. Terra McGowen was then hit by a pitch, advancing all runners, closing the score to 3-1 as Cruse casually ran home.
McGowen hobbled off the field in pain after being hit, forcing Vallery Wong to pinch run.
With the bases still loaded, infielder Rachel Cid singled for two RBI’s, as Delgado and Brito sprinted home following a Stanford error, knotting the score up at three.
“I was just battling off the inside pitches and knowing that in a three-two count she’s gonna give me something I can handle and I took it right up the middle,” Cid said.
As the crowd at Jane Sanders helped shift the momentum, Stanford relieved its starting pitcher, inserting Molly Millar as the replacement. Following the pitching change, Oregon’s Allee Bunker doubled, sending Cid and Wong home in the process, giving the Ducks their first lead of the afternoon, 5-3.
After Bunker advanced to third behind a Tehya Bird single and ran home when Gabby Herrera grounded out for a double play, advancing the Ducks lead to 6-3.
With the score still 6-3 in the bottom sixth, A Delgado double sparked another set of hits for the Ducks. Brito singled, sending Delgado to third. McGowen then singled to where Delgado scored, increasing the Ducks lead to four.
“To see us answer with six and to get an additional one in the sixth inning to get one more I think that’s what we needed…..love how they answered back” said Oregon head coach Melyssa Lombardi.
In the top of the seventh, Stanford’s attempt at a comeback fell short. After the Cardinal’s Sydney Steelegot her helmet was knocked off by a pitch, she advanced to first, and then second after a Teaghan Cowles single. Due to a fielding error, Steele scored, closing the gap to 7-4.
After the score, the Ducks relieved their starting pitcher Brooke Yanez, sending in Raegan Breedlove to close the game out. Yanez allowed six hits and recorded seven strikeouts on Saturday.
Breedlove needed just ten pitches to secure three outs, as she swifty closed out the game.
Haley Cruse led the way for the Ducks on Saturday, going 3-for-4 with one run. She boosted her season average to .403. The Duck’s also recorded 14 total hits, one of their highest hit tallies of the season.
“It was really nice to see because they’ve been putting in the work and working really hard on their strategies at the plate and we weren’t getting what we wanted to get so it was nice to see us finally open it up,” Lombard said.
With the win, the Ducks jump to a 30-9 record and take a 2-1 series lead against Stanford. The two teams will square off for the fourth time in three days on Sunday at 10:30 a.m. in Eugene.
