Saturday, April 6
Columbia, MO
9:00 AM
University of Oregon
vs
Pittsburgh
Photo by: Scott Quintard
Ducks Take Break from Pac-12 Play in Missouri
04/04/19 | Softball
EUGENE, Ore. - The Oregon softball team will take a break from Pac-12 play this weekend with four games in Columbia, Mo., two against Missouri and two against Pittsburgh.
Oregon (13-18, 1-8 Pac-12) will open the weekend against Pittsburgh at 9 a.m. PT on Saturday before playing Missouri at 2 p.m., and will be back in action on Sunday at 7 a.m. vs. Pittsburgh and 9:30 a.m. against Missouri. The Ducks are coming off a 2-2 week in the Bay Area including a 5-0 win at Pacific and a 7-2 win at Stanford, Oregon's first in Pac-12 play.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Oregon's two games against Missouri this weekend will be broadcast on SEC Network and will be available to stream on the WatchESPN app. There will be no stream for UO's games vs. Pittsburgh, and no radio feed will be available this weekend. Links to live stats can be found on the softball schedule on GoDucks.com, and live updates will be provided on Twitter via @OregonSB.
ABOUT PITTSBURGH
Pittsburgh (5-29, 2-10 ACC) has gotten off to a tough start in 2019, losing 15 of its last 17 games after a nine-inning loss to Ohio State on Wednesday. The Panthers own a 6.80 team ERA, with Brittany Knight shouldering the load with 104.1 innings pitched. Olivia Gray is hitting .333 to lead the offense, and three Panthers have hit four or more home runs. Oregon and Pitt have met just one time before, a 3-2 Ducks' win on March 3, 2012.
ABOUT MISSOURI
Missouri (19-14, 6-6 SEC) is coming off a doubleheader sweep at Wichita State and has gotten off to a 6-6 start in Pac-12 play, including a three-game road sweep at Kentucky. Jazmyn Rollin is hitting a whopping .451 with seven home runs to lead the offense, while Kimberly Wert has mashed a team-high 13 home runs. The Ducks and Tigers met once already this season on opening weekend, a 6-1 Oregon win behind a complete game by Jordan Dail. UO owns a 7-6 advantage and a five-game win streak in the all-time series.
DAIL FIRES SECOND NO-HITTER AT PACIFIC
SO LHP Jordan Dail was untouchable in last Wednesday's 5-0 win at Pacific, tossing her second no-hitter of the season with a career-high 13 strikeouts over seven shutout innings. She did walk five batters, but allowed just two to reach scoring position in arguably the most dominant outing of her career. Dail, who no-hit Florida Atlantic on Feb. 16, became just the fourth Duck in program history to throw multiple seven-inning no-hitters in the same season. The no-no was also Dail's 11th complete game and third complete-game shutout of the season.
DUCKS GRINDING THROUGH LOADED SCHEDULE
Through their first 31 games, the Ducks own the nation's second-toughest strength of schedule and have played 15 games against teams ranked in the NFCA top 25, headlined by a win over then-No. 8 LSU on Feb. 15. Oregon played 11 games against ranked teams during its recent 12-game slide.
BATS BUST OUT IN BAY AREA
The Ducks' offense found a groove last week in the Bay Area, putting up 24 runs on 39 hits over four games. Oregon tied its season-high with 14 hits on Saturday at Stanford, including the first career four-hit game by JR OF Haley Cruse. The Ducks dominated the first inning at Stanford, scoring 11 runs in the opening frame over three games, including first-inning grand slams by FR IF Allee Bunker (Friday) and SO UT Shaye Bowden (Saturday). FR IF Rachel Cid homered on both Friday and Saturday to take over the team lead (6), SR C/1B April Utecht went deep Wednesday at Pacific and Cruse finished the week hitting .615 with a .706 on-base percentage.
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 are tied for the Pac-12 lead and No. 7 nationally in fielding percentage (.978), committing a conference-low 17 errors through the first 31 games. Oregon also leads the conference in runners caught stealing (13), led by SO UT Shaye Bowden's Pac-12-best 11 from behind the plate.
FRESHMAN SIEVERS LEADING OFFENSIVE ATTACK
FR IF Jasmine Sievers is Oregon's leading hitter so far in 2019 with a .355 batting average and a team-best 11 extra-base hits, including three home runs. Sievers missed the first four games of the year rehabbing an injury, and then burst onto the scene in her debut by going 3-for-3 with a home run vs. Seattle. Sievers' second career home run was a huge one, a game-tying shot with one out in the seventh inning on March 23 against No. 7 Washington to send the game to extra innings. The freshman was just a home run shy of the cycle last Wednesday at Pacific, going 3-for-3 with a double, triple and two RBIs.
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 (10-8, 3.77 ERA) leads the Pac-12 and is top-10 nationally with 133.2 innings pitched, 19.1 more than any other pitcher in the Pac-12, and she is third in the conference with 142 strikeouts. The Forest, Va., native has thrown 11 complete games and three shutouts, including two seven-inning no-hitters, and she leads the Pac-12 in games started (20) and appearances (25).
TAKE YOUR BASE
Oregon has shown good patience at the plate so far this season, ranking fourth in the Pac-12 and in the top 25 nationally with 116 walks as a team. JR OF Haley Cruse is tied for the Pac-12 lead and No. 21 in the nation with 24 walks, double what she had in 130 at-bats last season, while SR C/1B April Utecht (20) is tied for sixth in the Pac-12. Cruse also ranks eighth in the Pac-12 with a team-best .482 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, IF Jasmine Sievers and OF Lexi Wagner have all started at least 27 games already, with FR UT Hannah Galey also making 21 starts. Sievers leads the Ducks with a .355 batting average, while Cid is the team leader in home runs (6) while ranking second in RBIs (20).
UP NEXT
Oregon will return to Pac-12 play next weekend with a three-game series at No. 1 UCLA.
Oregon (13-18, 1-8 Pac-12) will open the weekend against Pittsburgh at 9 a.m. PT on Saturday before playing Missouri at 2 p.m., and will be back in action on Sunday at 7 a.m. vs. Pittsburgh and 9:30 a.m. against Missouri. The Ducks are coming off a 2-2 week in the Bay Area including a 5-0 win at Pacific and a 7-2 win at Stanford, Oregon's first in Pac-12 play.
HOW TO FOLLOW
Oregon's two games against Missouri this weekend will be broadcast on SEC Network and will be available to stream on the WatchESPN app. There will be no stream for UO's games vs. Pittsburgh, and no radio feed will be available this weekend. Links to live stats can be found on the softball schedule on GoDucks.com, and live updates will be provided on Twitter via @OregonSB.
ABOUT PITTSBURGH
Pittsburgh (5-29, 2-10 ACC) has gotten off to a tough start in 2019, losing 15 of its last 17 games after a nine-inning loss to Ohio State on Wednesday. The Panthers own a 6.80 team ERA, with Brittany Knight shouldering the load with 104.1 innings pitched. Olivia Gray is hitting .333 to lead the offense, and three Panthers have hit four or more home runs. Oregon and Pitt have met just one time before, a 3-2 Ducks' win on March 3, 2012.
ABOUT MISSOURI
Missouri (19-14, 6-6 SEC) is coming off a doubleheader sweep at Wichita State and has gotten off to a 6-6 start in Pac-12 play, including a three-game road sweep at Kentucky. Jazmyn Rollin is hitting a whopping .451 with seven home runs to lead the offense, while Kimberly Wert has mashed a team-high 13 home runs. The Ducks and Tigers met once already this season on opening weekend, a 6-1 Oregon win behind a complete game by Jordan Dail. UO owns a 7-6 advantage and a five-game win streak in the all-time series.
DAIL FIRES SECOND NO-HITTER AT PACIFIC
SO LHP Jordan Dail was untouchable in last Wednesday's 5-0 win at Pacific, tossing her second no-hitter of the season with a career-high 13 strikeouts over seven shutout innings. She did walk five batters, but allowed just two to reach scoring position in arguably the most dominant outing of her career. Dail, who no-hit Florida Atlantic on Feb. 16, became just the fourth Duck in program history to throw multiple seven-inning no-hitters in the same season. The no-no was also Dail's 11th complete game and third complete-game shutout of the season.
DUCKS GRINDING THROUGH LOADED SCHEDULE
Through their first 31 games, the Ducks own the nation's second-toughest strength of schedule and have played 15 games against teams ranked in the NFCA top 25, headlined by a win over then-No. 8 LSU on Feb. 15. Oregon played 11 games against ranked teams during its recent 12-game slide.
BATS BUST OUT IN BAY AREA
The Ducks' offense found a groove last week in the Bay Area, putting up 24 runs on 39 hits over four games. Oregon tied its season-high with 14 hits on Saturday at Stanford, including the first career four-hit game by JR OF Haley Cruse. The Ducks dominated the first inning at Stanford, scoring 11 runs in the opening frame over three games, including first-inning grand slams by FR IF Allee Bunker (Friday) and SO UT Shaye Bowden (Saturday). FR IF Rachel Cid homered on both Friday and Saturday to take over the team lead (6), SR C/1B April Utecht went deep Wednesday at Pacific and Cruse finished the week hitting .615 with a .706 on-base percentage.
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 are tied for the Pac-12 lead and No. 7 nationally in fielding percentage (.978), committing a conference-low 17 errors through the first 31 games. Oregon also leads the conference in runners caught stealing (13), led by SO UT Shaye Bowden's Pac-12-best 11 from behind the plate.
FRESHMAN SIEVERS LEADING OFFENSIVE ATTACK
FR IF Jasmine Sievers is Oregon's leading hitter so far in 2019 with a .355 batting average and a team-best 11 extra-base hits, including three home runs. Sievers missed the first four games of the year rehabbing an injury, and then burst onto the scene in her debut by going 3-for-3 with a home run vs. Seattle. Sievers' second career home run was a huge one, a game-tying shot with one out in the seventh inning on March 23 against No. 7 Washington to send the game to extra innings. The freshman was just a home run shy of the cycle last Wednesday at Pacific, going 3-for-3 with a double, triple and two RBIs.
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 (10-8, 3.77 ERA) leads the Pac-12 and is top-10 nationally with 133.2 innings pitched, 19.1 more than any other pitcher in the Pac-12, and she is third in the conference with 142 strikeouts. The Forest, Va., native has thrown 11 complete games and three shutouts, including two seven-inning no-hitters, and she leads the Pac-12 in games started (20) and appearances (25).
TAKE YOUR BASE
Oregon has shown good patience at the plate so far this season, ranking fourth in the Pac-12 and in the top 25 nationally with 116 walks as a team. JR OF Haley Cruse is tied for the Pac-12 lead and No. 21 in the nation with 24 walks, double what she had in 130 at-bats last season, while SR C/1B April Utecht (20) is tied for sixth in the Pac-12. Cruse also ranks eighth in the Pac-12 with a team-best .482 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, IF Jasmine Sievers and OF Lexi Wagner have all started at least 27 games already, with FR UT Hannah Galey also making 21 starts. Sievers leads the Ducks with a .355 batting average, while Cid is the team leader in home runs (6) while ranking second in RBIs (20).
UP NEXT
Oregon will return to Pac-12 play next weekend with a three-game series at No. 1 UCLA.
