Saturday, March 23
Eugene, OR
1:00 PM
University of Oregon
vs
Washington
Photo by: Samuel Marshall
Ducks Host No. 7 Washington in First Pac-12 Home Series
03/20/19 | Softball
EUGENE, Ore. - The Oregon softball team returns to Jane Sanders Stadium this weekend to host No. 7 Washington in the Ducks' first Pac-12 home series of the 2019 season.
Looking to snap a nine-game losing streak and pick up its first conference win, Oregon will open the three-game series against the Huskies on Saturday (1 p.m.) before playing game two on Sunday (4 p.m.) and the series finale on Monday night (6 p.m.).
HOW TO FOLLOW
Saturday's series opener will be broadcast live on ESPNU and will be available to stream through the WatchESPN app. Trey Bender (PXP) and Danielle Lawrie (Analyst) will be on the call for ESPNU. Sunday and Monday's games will be aired on Pac-12 Network and will be called by Ann Schatz (PXP) and Amanda Freed (Analyst). Matt Tyra and KWVA Sports will have the radio call for all three games at 88.1 FM or kwvaradio.org/listen-live, and live stats can be found at Oregon.Statbroadcast.com.
ABOUT NO. 7 WASHINGTON
The Huskies come to Eugene with an 0-3 Pac-12 record after getting swept at home by No. 1 UCLA last weekend to open conference play. Washington, which ranks last in the Pac-12 in slugging percentage (.388) and eighth in on-base percentage (.367), has relied heavily this season on its pitching staff, which leads the conference in strikeouts (259) and ranks fourth in ERA (1.85). Sophomore Gabbie Plain is second with a 1.13 ERA and threw back-to-back no-hitters two weeks ago, and senior Tara Alvelo leads the Pac-12 in strikeouts (132) and is tied for second in wins (11). Taryn Atlee leads the UW offense and ranks seventh in the league with a .407 batting average.
DAIL ESTABLISHING WORKHORSE REPUTATION
SO LHP Jordan Dail has been an absolute workhorse so far in 2019 for the Ducks after transferring to Oregon from Virginia Tech. Dail (9-7, 3.64 ERA) is fourth in the nation with 109.2 innings pitched, 28.1 more than any other pitcher in the Pac-12, and ranks fourth in the conference and 21st nationally with 110 strikeouts. The Forest, Va., native has thrown 10 complete games and two shutouts, including her first career no-hitter on Feb. 16 against Florida Atlantic, and she leads the Pac-12 in games started (15) and is second in appearances (20). More on Dail on page 14.
YOUNG DUCKS FLASHING THE LEATHER
Oregon's defense, which has often been comprised of all underclassmen around the infield, has been incredibly solid so far this season. The Ducks lead the Pac-12 and are eighth nationally in fielding percentage (.979), committing a conference-low 10 errors through the first 21 games. SR OF Cherish Burks was tremendous in left field in Oregon's first home series vs. Oklahoma State with three highlight-reel diving catches, and both FR IF Rachel Cid and JR OF Haley Cruse made diving defensive plays last weekend in Tucson. Oregon also leads the conference in runners caught stealing (11), led by SO UT Shaye Bowden's Pac-12-best nine from behind the plate.
FR IF Allee Bunker has started to heat up at the plate over the last couple weekends, bringing a team-best five-game hitting streak into UO's series against Washington. Bunker hit .444 (4-for-9) last weekend against No. 12 Arizona in Tucson, including a two-hit game with a double on Sunday. Bunker (.307) is one of four Ducks hitting better than .300, and she has a team-low five strikeouts in a team-high 75 at-bats.
DUCKS TAKING PATIENT PLATE APPROACH
Oregon has shown good patience at the plate so far this season, ranking second in the Pac-12 and in the top 20 nationally with 97 walks as a team. JR OF Haley Cruse is tied for second in the conference and is 20th in the nation with 19 walks, seven more than she had in 130 at-bats last season, while FR IF Rachel Cid (16) and SR C/1B April Utecht (15) are tied for fifth and seventh in the Pac-12, respectively. Cruse also ranks 10th in the conference with a team-best .460 on-base percentage.
FRESHMEN SHOULDERING HEAVY LOAD
The Ducks have relied heavily on freshmen early on in 2019 as IF Allee Bunker, IF Rachel Cid, UT Hannah Galey, IF Jasmine Sievers and OF Lexi Wagner have all started at least 17 games already, with Bunker, Cid, Sievers and Wagner all starting 20 or more. Sievers leads the Ducks with a .321 batting average, while Cid is first on the team in home runs (4) and tied for the lead in RBIs (16). Cid (3B), Sievers (SS), Bunker (2B) and Galey (1B) have held down the infield for the majority of games, and Wagner has started 23 games and had two huge RBIs in Oregon's comeback win over Texas A&M on Feb. 23.
UP NEXT
Oregon will have a quick turnaround after its series with the Huskies, as the Ducks will leave Tuesday morning to head to California for a Wednesday game at Pacific. The Ducks will then go to Stanford for a three-game weekend series against the Cardinal.
Looking to snap a nine-game losing streak and pick up its first conference win, Oregon will open the three-game series against the Huskies on Saturday (1 p.m.) before playing game two on Sunday (4 p.m.) and the series finale on Monday night (6 p.m.).
HOW TO FOLLOW
Saturday's series opener will be broadcast live on ESPNU and will be available to stream through the WatchESPN app. Trey Bender (PXP) and Danielle Lawrie (Analyst) will be on the call for ESPNU. Sunday and Monday's games will be aired on Pac-12 Network and will be called by Ann Schatz (PXP) and Amanda Freed (Analyst). Matt Tyra and KWVA Sports will have the radio call for all three games at 88.1 FM or kwvaradio.org/listen-live, and live stats can be found at Oregon.Statbroadcast.com.
ABOUT NO. 7 WASHINGTON
The Huskies come to Eugene with an 0-3 Pac-12 record after getting swept at home by No. 1 UCLA last weekend to open conference play. Washington, which ranks last in the Pac-12 in slugging percentage (.388) and eighth in on-base percentage (.367), has relied heavily this season on its pitching staff, which leads the conference in strikeouts (259) and ranks fourth in ERA (1.85). Sophomore Gabbie Plain is second with a 1.13 ERA and threw back-to-back no-hitters two weeks ago, and senior Tara Alvelo leads the Pac-12 in strikeouts (132) and is tied for second in wins (11). Taryn Atlee leads the UW offense and ranks seventh in the league with a .407 batting average.
DAIL ESTABLISHING WORKHORSE REPUTATION
SO LHP Jordan Dail has been an absolute workhorse so far in 2019 for the Ducks after transferring to Oregon from Virginia Tech. Dail (9-7, 3.64 ERA) is fourth in the nation with 109.2 innings pitched, 28.1 more than any other pitcher in the Pac-12, and ranks fourth in the conference and 21st nationally with 110 strikeouts. The Forest, Va., native has thrown 10 complete games and two shutouts, including her first career no-hitter on Feb. 16 against Florida Atlantic, and she leads the Pac-12 in games started (15) and is second in appearances (20). More on Dail on page 14.
YOUNG DUCKS FLASHING THE LEATHER
Oregon's defense, which has often been comprised of all underclassmen around the infield, has been incredibly solid so far this season. The Ducks lead the Pac-12 and are eighth nationally in fielding percentage (.979), committing a conference-low 10 errors through the first 21 games. SR OF Cherish Burks was tremendous in left field in Oregon's first home series vs. Oklahoma State with three highlight-reel diving catches, and both FR IF Rachel Cid and JR OF Haley Cruse made diving defensive plays last weekend in Tucson. Oregon also leads the conference in runners caught stealing (11), led by SO UT Shaye Bowden's Pac-12-best nine from behind the plate.
BUNKER STREAKING INTO FIRST PAC-12 HOME SERIES.@_rachelcid_ and @haley_crusee came up with defensive web gems over the weekend for the Ducks, who remain first in the Pac-12 and eighth in the NCAA in fielding percentage (.979). #GoDucks pic.twitter.com/WqLPJlXKdD
— Oregon Softball (@OregonSB) March 19, 2019
FR IF Allee Bunker has started to heat up at the plate over the last couple weekends, bringing a team-best five-game hitting streak into UO's series against Washington. Bunker hit .444 (4-for-9) last weekend against No. 12 Arizona in Tucson, including a two-hit game with a double on Sunday. Bunker (.307) is one of four Ducks hitting better than .300, and she has a team-low five strikeouts in a team-high 75 at-bats.
DUCKS TAKING PATIENT PLATE APPROACH
Oregon has shown good patience at the plate so far this season, ranking second in the Pac-12 and in the top 20 nationally with 97 walks as a team. JR OF Haley Cruse is tied for second in the conference and is 20th in the nation with 19 walks, seven more than she had in 130 at-bats last season, while FR IF Rachel Cid (16) and SR C/1B April Utecht (15) are tied for fifth and seventh in the Pac-12, respectively. Cruse also ranks 10th in the conference with a team-best .460 on-base percentage.
FRESHMEN SHOULDERING HEAVY LOAD
The Ducks have relied heavily on freshmen early on in 2019 as IF Allee Bunker, IF Rachel Cid, UT Hannah Galey, IF Jasmine Sievers and OF Lexi Wagner have all started at least 17 games already, with Bunker, Cid, Sievers and Wagner all starting 20 or more. Sievers leads the Ducks with a .321 batting average, while Cid is first on the team in home runs (4) and tied for the lead in RBIs (16). Cid (3B), Sievers (SS), Bunker (2B) and Galey (1B) have held down the infield for the majority of games, and Wagner has started 23 games and had two huge RBIs in Oregon's comeback win over Texas A&M on Feb. 23.
UP NEXT
Oregon will have a quick turnaround after its series with the Huskies, as the Ducks will leave Tuesday morning to head to California for a Wednesday game at Pacific. The Ducks will then go to Stanford for a three-game weekend series against the Cardinal.
