Dail No-Hits Florida Atlantic

Saturday, February 16

Clearwater, FL

7:00 AM

University of Oregon

7-1

Florida Atlantic

3-5

Florida Atlantic

Oregon

02/16/19 | Softball

Box Score Box: Oregon 2, FAU 0

By: Nate Krueger

CLEARWATER, Fla. – Sophomore Jordan Dail fired her first career no-hitter on Saturday morning to lead the No. 19 Oregon softball team to a 2-0 win over Florida Atlantic at the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational.

Dail struck out nine, including seven of the first nine batters she faced, and didn't allow a runner to reach second base after the first inning as the Ducks (7-1) bounced back from their first loss of the season to earn their second win of the weekend in Clearwater.

Oregon finished the St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational with a 2-2 showing after falling to No. 18 Kentucky, 12-3, later in the day on Saturday. The new-look Ducks will take a 7-2 overall record into next weekend's Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, Calif.

How it Happened: Dail walked the first batter she saw and immediately had a runner in scoring position after a stolen base, but the sophomore lefty bucked down and struck out the next three batters to get out of the inning unscathed.

After a one-out walk in the second, Dail struck out back-to-back batters to end the inning and went on to retire 10 straight before surrendering her third walk with two outs in the fifth. The Forest, Va., native recorded her eighth strikeout to end the frame, added one more in the sixth and then retired the Owls in order in the seventh to secure the win and the no-hitter.

"What I liked about Jordan today is early on she kept getting big in her counts, and then you could see her get a lot more efficient towards the middle and end of the game," said head coach Melyssa Lombardi. "She was starting to work ahead and would get to two strikes and then finish them off instead of letting them linger.

"I've been impressed with her. She needs to continue to manage her counts, but I love her fight and I love her fire and her confidence. You can tell that she gets into a situation and it doesn't faze her; she's pretty calm in big situations and I really like that about Jordan."

The Ducks took advantage of an FAU error to get on the board in the first and take an early 1-0 lead. Rachel Cid and April Utecht worked back-to-back walks with two outs, and Cid came around to score on an errant pickoff attempt at first that sailed down the right-field line.

Haley Cruse recorded the game's first hit in the bottom of the fifth, ripping a leadoff double down the left-field line. Utecht came through with two outs, driving an RBI single up the middle to score Cruse and give Dail a 2-0 lead.

In the Circle: Dail improved her record to a perfect 5-0 and dropped her season ERA to a measly 1.93 with her most dominant performance as a Duck. The left-hander walked four batters, but scattered them across four different innings and retired the next batter immediately after each free pass. Dail, who entered the weekend leading the Pac-12 in strikeouts, now has 43 across 36.1 innings this season.

At the Plate: Cruse, Utecht, Sievers, Shaye Bowden and Hannah Galey accounted for Oregon's five hits, with Utecht picking up the game's only RBI. The senior also drew two walks while finishing 1-for-1.

What it Means: After suffering their first loss of the season Friday night to No. 23 James Madison, the Ducks bounced right back behind Dail's no-hit gem. Oregon upset No. 8 LSU to open the weekend on Friday, the biggest win yet of the Melyssa Lombardi era, to come away with a 2-2 weekend at the loaded invitational in Clearwater.