Hansen Shuts Out Stanford in Regular Season Finale

STANFORD, Calif. – Stevie Hansen threw a five-hit shutout and Allee Bunker homered to lead No. 22 Oregon past Stanford 3-0 in the Ducks' regular season finale Sunday at Smith Family Stadium.
 
Hansen retired the last eight batters she faced in improving to 13-8 on the season.
 
Oregon finished the regular season at 31-17 overall and 10-14 in the Pac-12. Selections for the 2022 NCAA Tournament will be announced May 15.
 
"We're peaking at the right time," said head coach Melyssa Lombardi. "We've talked about all the cylinders – offense, defense, pitching – and now you're seeing all the cylinders firing. I'm proud of this group. I think we're in a great place."
 
How it Happened: After three scoreless innings, Bunker belted her 10th home run of the season off the camera platform in center field to lead off the fourth inning and more importantly, seize the game's momentum.
 
"I thought that was really big," said Lombardi. "The count was 0-1 and she got a changeup that she swung through and hit the ball dead center."
 
The Ducks also manufactured a run in the fourth. Ariel Carlson walked and stole second. She went to third on KK Humphreys' grounder and scored when Tehya Bird was able to punch the ball to the right side for an RBI ground out.
 
Rachel Cid came through with a pinch hit, two-out single to pick up a run for the Ducks in the fifth inning. Jasmine Williams reached on an error and stole second with one out. One out later, Cid singled through the hole between shortstop and third to bring Williams home.
 
"Clutch. That's Rachel Cid," said Lombardi. "That's what she's all about. Coming in and being clutch for us when we needed it and we needed that run."
 
That was more than enough for Hansen, who only allowed one runner to reach third base. In the third inning, Stanford had runners at the corners following a two-out single by Sydnee Huff. But Hansen got Emily Young to ground out to shortstop Paige Sinicki to get out of the inning.
 
The Cardinal (34-18, 9-12) also had a leadoff double in the fourth inning, but Hansen retired the next three batters on fly outs.
 
"I feel like today was a lot of mixing it in and out and going to the change to keep them off balance and throw off their timing," said Hansen.
 
Noteworthy: Bunker reached 10 home runs for the second season in a row. … She's the only player in the nation who has reached double-digit home runs while striking out six times or fewer each of the last two seasons. … Bunker drove in her team-leading 39th RBI of the season. … The Ducks didn't commit an error for the 25th time this season.
 
Quotable
Head Coach Melyssa Lombardi
"We have an opportunity to rest a little bit, heal up and take a breath for a second and then get ready to go."
 
On Deck: The 2022 NCAA Tournament Selection Show will be Sunday, May 15, at 4 p.m. Pacific time (ESPN2).
 
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