University of Oregon
13-0
Montana
4-7
Balint, Udria Lift Ducks Past Montana
02/25/17 | Softball
MAGGIE BALINT TOSSED SIX SHUTOUT INNINGS AND NIKKI UDRIA DROVE IN THREE WITH A HOME RUN TO LEAD OREGON TO A 6-0 WIN OVER MONTANA
HONOLULU - Another stellar performance in the circle by freshman Maggie Balint and a three-RBI day from Nikki Udria led the No. 5 ranked Oregon softball team to a 6-0 win over Montana at Rainbow Wahine Softball Stadium on Saturday morning.
The Ducks (13-0) remain undefeated on the season and are 4-0 in the Bank of Hawaii Invitational with one game remaining. Oregon will face host Hawai'i at 4 p.m. PT to close out the weekend.
How it Happened: The Ducks got in the board quickly to start the game, as Nikki Udria picked up an RBI on a groundout after back-to-back singles by Danica Mercado and Gwen Svekis followed by a wild pitch. Oregon added another in the second thanks to a Montana error to go up 2-0, with Shannon Rhodes coming in to score on an error on the second baseman after ripping a one-out double down the left-field line.
Udria continued to swing the bat well on the weekend and ran her RBI total to three for the game in the fifth, ripping a two-run homerun to right-center field to extend the Ducks' lead to 4-0. The two-run shot was her team-best fourth of the year and second of the weekend.
The Ducks capitalized on Montana mistakes again in the seventh inning to put two more runs on the board. Darya Kaboli-Nejad and April Utecht each reached with pinch-hit singles and advanced to scoring position on an error, and Rhodes scored Nejad with an RBI single to left. The Grizzlies (4-7) committed their fourth error of the game on the play to allow a second run to score.
In the Circle: Oregon received another stellar pitching performance from freshman Maggie Balint (7-0), who blanked the Grizzlies on just three hits across six innings while striking out five with a pair of walks. Fellow freshman Miranda Elish came in for the seventh and kept Montana off the board with a strikeout to seal the win.
At the Plate: Udria led the Ducks with three RBIs while going 1-for-3 with the two-run homer, and Svekis and Rhodes each finished with 2-for-4 days. Rhodes also picked up an RBI. The Ducks totalled 10 hits against the Grizzlies and worked five walks while striking out only three times.
On the Weekend: Through four games this weekend, Udria leads the Ducks with a .545 batting average (6-for-11) while driving in a team-best six runs with two homers and double. Svekis is right behind at .538 (7-for-13) for the weekend with two doubles and two RBIs, and Mercado is 3-for-16 (.462) with a home run. Mia Camuso is also above .400 at .417 (5-for-12) with two RBIs.
In the circle, Balint has allowed only two runs in 13.2 innings across three appearances, earning two wins and a save while striking out 17 with only three walks. Elish has yet to allow a run in 7.1 innings pitched, surrendering only three hits with nine strikeouts and only one walk.
Up Next: Oregon will close out the Bank of Hawaii Invitational with its second game of the day at 4 p.m. PT against Hawai'i.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Balint, Maggie (7-0)
L: Hood, Michaela (0-1)
Batting:
2B: Rhodes, Shannon 1
HR: Udria, Nikki 1
RBI: Udria, Nikki 3 ; Rhodes, Shannon 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Mercado, Danica 1 ; Svekis, Gwen 1 ; Udria, Nikki 1 ; Kaboli-Nejad, Darya 1 ; Lilley, Jenna 1 ; Rhodes, Shannon 1
SB: Mack, Alexis 1 ; Cruse, Haley 1
