University of Oregon
31-6, 9-2
Oregon State
24-11-1, 4-7
Decker's Homer Helps Ducks Beat OSU
04/10/16 | Softball
CORVALLIS, Ore. – Hailey Decker belted a three-run homer in the third and the Ducks held on to beat the Beavers, 4-3, on Saturday at the Oregon State Softball Complex.
The Ducks (31-6, 9-2) defeated the Beavers for the 11th straight time with the win and will go for a fourth straight sweep of the Civil War on Sunday at 3 PM.
HOW IT HAPPENED: The Ducks scored four runs on seven hits through the first five innings. Senior Hailey Decker was responsible for three of those runs with a three-run homer to left in the third inning. Nikki Udria added another with a RBI double to score Alyssa Gillespie in the fifth.
Meanwhile, freshman Megan Kleist was sensational early on. The righty was perfect through four innings with five strikeouts before Oregon State started the fifth with a double.
After the double, the Beavers smacked a two-run homer to make it a 4-2 lead for the Ducks. A RBI double later in the inning made it a 4-3 lead and that was it for Kleist.
The Ducks brought Geri Ann Glasco on to pitch and, with a runner at second, she retired three straight with a pair of strikeouts to get UO out of a big jam. Glasco kept Oregon State off the board in the sixth before head coach Mike White brought on ace Cheridan Hawkins to pitch the seventh.
Hawkins allowed a one-out single but struck out three batters in the seventh to earn her second save of the year. Hawkins is now tied for the NCAA's active lead with 17 career saves.
CIVIL WAR STREAK: Oregon has defeated Oregon State 11 straight times, outscoring the Beavers 111-24 during the streak.
A GRAND TIME: With three more strikeouts in Saturday's win, Cheridan Hawkins now has 993 strikeouts in her four-year career.
UP NEXT: The Ducks go for the sweep tomorrow at 3 PM on Pac-12 Network.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Kleist, Megan (13-3)
L: Miller, B. (10-6)
S: Hawkins, Cheridan (2)
Batting:
2B: Udria, Nikki 1
HR: Decker, Hailey 1
RBI: Udria, Nikki 1 ; Decker, Hailey 3
SH: Costa, Koral 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Gillespie, Alyssa 1 ; Costa, Koral 1 ; Glasco, Geri Ann 1 ; Decker, Hailey 1
SB: Burks, Cherish 1
Batting:
2B: Hampton, N. 1 ; Manewa, M. 1
HR: Anthony, M. 1
RBI: Anthony, M. 2 ; Manewa, M. 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Gregoire, R. 1 ; Anthony, M. 1 ; Weeks, S. 1
