No. 5 University of Tennessee had the bases juiced in the fifth inning against Oregon softball at the Mary Nutter Classic on Feb. 20.
The Ducks held the Volunteers to a shutout and didn’t want to lose their opportunity to seize a massive victory. Transfer pitcher Lyndsey Grein dealt — called strike three. She escaped the top of the fifth without any damage.
Oregon has rostered some strong pitchers in recent years, but Grein provides something it has lacked: a pitcher who can get out of a jam.
The Ducks finished a stretch of three weeks on the road with a 5-0 outing at the Mary Nutter Classic. All five of those teams played in the NCAA Tournament last season and three ranked in the top-25. Grein was a key cog in Oregon’s success, earning multiple recognitions.
Grein became the first Duck to win National Fastball Coaches Association Pitcher of the Week since Brooke Yanez did so in 2021. She also captured her second Big Ten Pitcher of the Week honor of the season.
“I’m very grateful and thankful to be recognized,” Grein said. “However, I still have a lot more work to do and I look forward to doing it.”
Grein pitched 18.0 shutout innings at the Mary Nutter Classic to help the program to a 15-1 start, its best since 2021.
Part of the early success Grein has achieved on the mound is due to the dedication she put into improving her drop ball in the fall and over the break.
“To see her get swinging misses and strikeouts with her drop ball, I think it really opens up her spread and doesn’t allow teams to just hunt one level,” head coach Melyssa Lombardi said.
Grein said that during her recruitment process she told Lombardi a list of things she wanted to improve on — including her drop ball — and they got to work.
“I don’t think there’s anything else you could really ask for besides having a coach that’s willing to help you grow and also care for you at the same time,” Grein said.
The junior pitcher displayed few flaws in the first three weekends at Oregon. In the fifth inning of the Ducks’ first game of the Oregon Classic, she ran into trouble for one of the first times this season. The University of San Diego scored all five of its runs in the fifth.
Grein eventually settled into the game and retired the final seven batters.
The rest of the weekend was smooth sailing for the Oregon pitching after Elise Sokolsky also struggled against the Toreros in the first game. The pair combined for 18 strikeouts across two games and both reached 300 career strikeouts on the second day of the Oregon Classic.
Grein spoke about the camaraderie of the Ducks’ pitching staff ahead of the Oregon Classic and their ability to lean on each other regardless of if the game is going their way or not.
“Knowing that you can come into any situation or come out of any situation knowing that your teammate’s going to have your back is huge,” Grein said. “I’m super, super close with my bullpen mates.”
After Grein and Oregon defeated multiple top-25 teams in the first three weeks, the program saw lesser-known opponents at the Oregon Classic. The Ducks’ mentality of focusing on what it can do better every game is what’s led to its early success.
“We also talk a lot about having a faceless opponent,” Grein said. “Treat everybody the same and stay within ourselves.”
Oregon got off to its best start since the 2021 season, winning 15-straight and sitting at 20-1 after its home-opening weekend. If the Ducks continue to combine their timely hitting with Grein’s dominance on the mound, their steady rise in the rankings will only continue.
