With only a couple of series left for Oregon this season, the smell of playoffs are in the air. But the Ducks can’t lazily float through the air like a cartoon character smelling a cooling pie on a windowsill; they still have a couple series ahead: one against Ohio State and the last against the SoCal giant, UCLA.

The Ducks this season have gone on a tear. They’ve carried over their Big Ten series winning streak from the 2025 campaign and have logged their 13th series win, they currently sit at 32 wins on the season and are ranked fourth in the Big Ten with only Washington, Nebraska and UCLA ahead of them.

Oregon boasts the second best win streak in the Big Ten in conference play with eight straight wins (only Washington is ahead of them, with 15-straight). Through their 41 games they’ve scored 279 runs (5th), logged 352 hits (T-4th) and they have a team average of .224 (5th). While the entire team is hitting well, four Ducks bats have been scary all year: Elon Butler, Amari Harper, Taryn Ho and Kaylynn Jones.

Butler has been the hottest bat for Oregon: she’s hit for the first cycle in Oregon softball history, leads in the team in average (.431), OPS (1.401), runs (50), hits (52), doubles (16), home runs (12), RBI (48), slugging percentage (.873) and holds an incredible on-base percentage of (.528).

Freshman Ho has been a spark plug for a number of rallies this season and holds the second highest average on the team (.386); Harper has been uber consistent at the plate and ranks just behind Butler in most offensive categories; Jones continues to fly somewhat under the radar when talking about this offense, but she’s produced a great slash line of .373/.491/.556.

The offense has the firepower to slug its way through the playoffs. That is, if the bats are on that day. Oregon, like any team in the marathon that is a softball season, has seen games where the fiery offense was extinguished and it was up to the pitching staff to get it done.

The pitching staff is exceptional. Led by senior ace Lyndsey Grein, the Ducks have put up great numbers in the Big Ten this season. Oregon’s team ERA is 3.28 (4th), with a WHIP of 1.19 (2nd), and it has 304 strikeouts (2nd) and issued 102 walks (4th lowest). While that may be mostly thanks to Grein’s multiple heroic performances this season both to when she starts and out of the pen, the numbers don’t lie: Oregon can carve you up at the plate.

Oregon’s numbers this season put it right in the mix for one of the best softball teams in the conference and the country. But it also means that, when it comes to the Big Ten Tournament in early May, the Ducks are going to have to put everything together. Washington, Nebraska and UCLA are very solid teams and pose the biggest threats to Oregon’s chances.

With just two series left, one against Ohio State and the last against UCLA, Oregon will catch a glimpse into what playoffs might look for this team. While winning the series against both is the preferred outcome, the pragmatic approach is to take the series against the Buckeyes and avoid getting swept against the always-potent Bruins.

Before those two series can get underway, the Ducks have one non-conference game against the Oregon State Beavers (whom the Ducks have already taken the season series from) on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Jane Sanders Stadium. The game will be broadcast on Big Ten Plus (video) and KWVA (radio).