The Ducks thought they found a spark during their opening weekend blowout wins. After a one-run loss yesterday, they effectively relit a raging offense in a 9-0 win over North Dakota (3–3).
In their first victorious encore to a successful opening week in Las Vegas, Oregon softball (6-1) flocked to Arizona and dismantled another overmatched opponent.
“Start fast, stay fast, finish fast,” head coach Melyssa Lombardi said earlier this week after practice.
The Ducks did all three of those things well, using small ball — they stole five bases and walked eight times on the day — to get out in front early before its powerful offense pushed things far out of reach.
Paige Sinicki, Stefani Ma’ake and Rylee McCoy all blasted home runs in the win. Oregon silenced any potential Fighting Hawk comeback by hanging a six-spot in the fifth inning and extending its lead to nine.
It was another underwhelming opponent, but the offensive output from Oregon can’t be ignored. The Ducks have secured all but one of their wins by seven-or-more runs.
Underpinning the win was a lights-out pitching performance from Taylour Spencer, who faced the minimum through her four hitless innings of work.
Spencer changed speeds well, pounded the zone — she threw 38 of 56 pitches for strikes — and her lone allowed baserunner of the day was thrown out by Emma Cox (1-1 with two walks and a double).
Kai Luschar stole four bases and walked three times in the win. Ma’ake (1-3, two RBI’s) and Cox in particular look to be significant contributors going forward, with both freshmen making an impact and hitting at the three and four spots in the lineup respectively.
Cox opened the ambush in the fifth, doubling down the left-field line before Ma’ake powered her home with a long homer over the scoreboard. More runs came on knocks from Sinicki and Kaylynn Jones as well as McCoy’s second homer as a Duck.
Oregon will head into a 12:30 matchup with Weber State (3-3) in high form. All seven Ducks that added a hit scored a run allowing Lombardi to substitute freely in the late innings of the game clearly out of reach.
