Friday, March 3
Fullerton, CA
12:30 PM
University of Oregon
13-4
1
vs
4
Minnesota
9-6
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
R
H
E
Oregon
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
0
Minnesota
0
3
0
1
0
0
X
4
7
1
Howard’s First Career Homer Highlights Win
03/04/23 | Softball
FULLERTON, Calif. – It's extraordinary when a team scoring 11 runs in the first inning and a pitcher winning her 10th straight game gets overshadowed. But that's what happened because of what Katelyn Howard did when she stepped to the plate in the fourth inning of a game the Ducks had well in hand.
"My teammates were insanely happy for me and it meant everything," said Howard.
The record books will show that No. 20 Oregon (14-4) registered an impressive 17-1 win over Cal Poly Friday evening after dropping a disappointing 4-1 contest to Minnesota earlier in the day.
What they won't show is the backstory on Howard, a fifth-year senior who has seen limited playing time during her stay in Eugene, but nonetheless is a cornerstone of the program. Howard has been with coach Melyssa Lombardi from day one and decided to take advantage of her "Covid year" for one more go-round with the Ducks.
It is a labor of love for Howard. Prior to Friday, she had 35 career plate appearances. Six walks. 29 official at-bats. Zero hits.
With Oregon ahead 13-0 in the third inning, Howard was call upon to pinch hit for KK Humphreys. She got ahead in the count at 3-1 and swung at strike two before fouling off another pitch to stay alive. On the next delivery, Howard went with the pitch on the outer half of the plate and laced a line-drive single into right field. Suddenly 0-for-29 was 1-for-30 and her teammates pounded the roof of the dugout in celebration.
"I was just looking for a pitch to drive," said Howard.
Howard eventually scored on Tehya Bird's grounder, crossing the plate for the first time in her career. All that by itself would have more than enough for the feel-good story of the day.
But sport often has a way of rewarding those who toil and persevere.
Howard remained in the game defensively at first base and was scheduled to bat fourth in the bottom of the fourth, which would be the Ducks' final at-bat with the run rule in play. The first two Oregon batters got out and Howard's chances for an encore at-bat suddenly seemed slim. But freshman Remmington Hewitt smashed a pinch-hit double off the base of the wall in left to keep the inning alive.
Howard stepped into the batter's box. The count was quickly 0-2 on a strike and a foul ball. She battled for six more pitches. Ball one. Foul. Ball two. Two more foul balls. Ball three. With a 3-2 count on the ninth pitch of the at-bat, Howard again saw a pitch on the outer half of the plate.
"I was just ready for a pitch I could drive and luckily it was on the outside corner and I took it the other way," said Howard.
Howard, from nearby Long Beach, drilled a line drive on a string that didn't stop until hitting the netting beyond the right field wall. As she rounded first, a smile crept across her face while her teammates poured out of the dugout to greet her at home plate. When she reached the dish, Howard was swallowed up by the jubilation of her teammates celebrating her first career home run.
"It was literally the night of my dreams," said Howard. "I couldn't picture it any better.
"I have no words to describe it. I love every one of my teammates. It was a good night."
The Ducks hope there will be many more meaningful hits this season. But none may mean more than the two by Howard Friday night.
How it Happened Game 1: Oregon scored first on Alyssa Daniell's first of three home runs on the day to take a 1-0 lead in the second inning, but Minnesota (9-6) answered with three runs in the bottom of the frame an never trailed after that on the way to a 4-1 win.
Daniell and Allee Bunker had the Ducks' only two hits of the game.
Raegan Breedlove was a bright spot, throwing three scoreless innings in relief of starter Morgan Scott (2-2).
How it Happened Game 2: Daniell homered twice in the first inning as the Ducks scored 11 runs in the opening frame.
Terra McGowan got things going with a solo home run and Daniell followed with her second home run of the night, a two-run shot to right and Oregon led 3-0.
Humphreys singled and stole second. Ariel Carlson walked and Humphreys stole third on ball four. Then the Ducks executed a double steal as Carlson swiped second while Humphreys stole home for her third stolen base of the game.
Tehya Bird singled to score Carlson and make it 5-0. Paige Sinicki singled and Hanna Delgado walked to load the bases. McGowan singled through the right side to plate Bird and then Bunker doubled through the left side as all three runners came home to make it 9-0.
Daniell then homered to right again, her second home run of the inning and her third on the day, to cap the Ducks' 11-run inning.
Oregon added two more runs in the bottom of the second. Allison Benning doubled for her first hit of 2023 and pinch-runner Kai Luschar came home on Delgado's RBI single. Bunker singled into right to score Bird, who was hit by a pitch, for her fourth RBI of the game, giving Oregon a 13-0 lead.
The Ducks scored twice more in the third when Bird's grounder scored Howard and Kedre Luschar also scored on an error on the play making it 15-0.
After Howard capped the Ducks' scoring with her home run in the fourth, Cal Poly scored an unearned run in the top of the fifth for the 17-1 final.
Stevie Hansen (10-2) struck out three in three innings while giving up no runs on two hits to earn her 10th consecutive win.
Noteworthy: With four hits on Friday, Bunker passed Samantha Pappas (238/2010-13) for fourth in UO career hits with 239 … Bunker had two doubles to jump into the UO career top 10 with 39 (tied for fifth with three players). She is just three doubles out of second … It was Bunker's fourth game this season with four RBI; she leads the team with 22 … This was the first time Oregon scored 17 or more runs in a game since scoring 18 against Dayton in 2020; that game with Dayton was also the last time the Ducks scored 11 runs in one inning … Eight of the nine Oregon starters had a hit and eight of the nine starters scored a run … Benning made her first appearance in the circle, going two innings and allowing an unearned run … Abby Mulvey made her first career plate appearance (popped out to third) … Humphreys is the first Duck to steal three bases in a game since Haley Cruise against Sacramento State in 2019.
Quotable
Infielder Katelyn Howard
"Everybody's in good spirits. This team is going in the right direction. I'm just really excited to see where we go."
On Deck: The Ducks wrap up the Judi Garman Classic on Saturday with games against San Jose State (5:30 p.m.) and LMU (8 p.m.).
- www.GoDucks.com -
"My teammates were insanely happy for me and it meant everything," said Howard.
The record books will show that No. 20 Oregon (14-4) registered an impressive 17-1 win over Cal Poly Friday evening after dropping a disappointing 4-1 contest to Minnesota earlier in the day.
What they won't show is the backstory on Howard, a fifth-year senior who has seen limited playing time during her stay in Eugene, but nonetheless is a cornerstone of the program. Howard has been with coach Melyssa Lombardi from day one and decided to take advantage of her "Covid year" for one more go-round with the Ducks.
It is a labor of love for Howard. Prior to Friday, she had 35 career plate appearances. Six walks. 29 official at-bats. Zero hits.
With Oregon ahead 13-0 in the third inning, Howard was call upon to pinch hit for KK Humphreys. She got ahead in the count at 3-1 and swung at strike two before fouling off another pitch to stay alive. On the next delivery, Howard went with the pitch on the outer half of the plate and laced a line-drive single into right field. Suddenly 0-for-29 was 1-for-30 and her teammates pounded the roof of the dugout in celebration.
"I was just looking for a pitch to drive," said Howard.
Howard eventually scored on Tehya Bird's grounder, crossing the plate for the first time in her career. All that by itself would have more than enough for the feel-good story of the day.
But sport often has a way of rewarding those who toil and persevere.
Howard remained in the game defensively at first base and was scheduled to bat fourth in the bottom of the fourth, which would be the Ducks' final at-bat with the run rule in play. The first two Oregon batters got out and Howard's chances for an encore at-bat suddenly seemed slim. But freshman Remmington Hewitt smashed a pinch-hit double off the base of the wall in left to keep the inning alive.
Howard stepped into the batter's box. The count was quickly 0-2 on a strike and a foul ball. She battled for six more pitches. Ball one. Foul. Ball two. Two more foul balls. Ball three. With a 3-2 count on the ninth pitch of the at-bat, Howard again saw a pitch on the outer half of the plate.
"I was just ready for a pitch I could drive and luckily it was on the outside corner and I took it the other way," said Howard.
Howard, from nearby Long Beach, drilled a line drive on a string that didn't stop until hitting the netting beyond the right field wall. As she rounded first, a smile crept across her face while her teammates poured out of the dugout to greet her at home plate. When she reached the dish, Howard was swallowed up by the jubilation of her teammates celebrating her first career home run.
"It was literally the night of my dreams," said Howard. "I couldn't picture it any better.
"I have no words to describe it. I love every one of my teammates. It was a good night."
The Ducks hope there will be many more meaningful hits this season. But none may mean more than the two by Howard Friday night.
How it Happened Game 1: Oregon scored first on Alyssa Daniell's first of three home runs on the day to take a 1-0 lead in the second inning, but Minnesota (9-6) answered with three runs in the bottom of the frame an never trailed after that on the way to a 4-1 win.
Daniell and Allee Bunker had the Ducks' only two hits of the game.
Raegan Breedlove was a bright spot, throwing three scoreless innings in relief of starter Morgan Scott (2-2).
How it Happened Game 2: Daniell homered twice in the first inning as the Ducks scored 11 runs in the opening frame.
Terra McGowan got things going with a solo home run and Daniell followed with her second home run of the night, a two-run shot to right and Oregon led 3-0.
Humphreys singled and stole second. Ariel Carlson walked and Humphreys stole third on ball four. Then the Ducks executed a double steal as Carlson swiped second while Humphreys stole home for her third stolen base of the game.
Tehya Bird singled to score Carlson and make it 5-0. Paige Sinicki singled and Hanna Delgado walked to load the bases. McGowan singled through the right side to plate Bird and then Bunker doubled through the left side as all three runners came home to make it 9-0.
Daniell then homered to right again, her second home run of the inning and her third on the day, to cap the Ducks' 11-run inning.
Oregon added two more runs in the bottom of the second. Allison Benning doubled for her first hit of 2023 and pinch-runner Kai Luschar came home on Delgado's RBI single. Bunker singled into right to score Bird, who was hit by a pitch, for her fourth RBI of the game, giving Oregon a 13-0 lead.
The Ducks scored twice more in the third when Bird's grounder scored Howard and Kedre Luschar also scored on an error on the play making it 15-0.
After Howard capped the Ducks' scoring with her home run in the fourth, Cal Poly scored an unearned run in the top of the fifth for the 17-1 final.
Stevie Hansen (10-2) struck out three in three innings while giving up no runs on two hits to earn her 10th consecutive win.
Noteworthy: With four hits on Friday, Bunker passed Samantha Pappas (238/2010-13) for fourth in UO career hits with 239 … Bunker had two doubles to jump into the UO career top 10 with 39 (tied for fifth with three players). She is just three doubles out of second … It was Bunker's fourth game this season with four RBI; she leads the team with 22 … This was the first time Oregon scored 17 or more runs in a game since scoring 18 against Dayton in 2020; that game with Dayton was also the last time the Ducks scored 11 runs in one inning … Eight of the nine Oregon starters had a hit and eight of the nine starters scored a run … Benning made her first appearance in the circle, going two innings and allowing an unearned run … Abby Mulvey made her first career plate appearance (popped out to third) … Humphreys is the first Duck to steal three bases in a game since Haley Cruise against Sacramento State in 2019.
Quotable
Infielder Katelyn Howard
"Everybody's in good spirits. This team is going in the right direction. I'm just really excited to see where we go."
On Deck: The Ducks wrap up the Judi Garman Classic on Saturday with games against San Jose State (5:30 p.m.) and LMU (8 p.m.).
- www.GoDucks.com -
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Pease (5-3)
L: Scott, Morgan (2-2)
Batting:
2B: Bunker, Allee 1
HR: Daniell, Alyssa 1
RBI: Daniell, Alyssa 1
SH: Morris, Kyla 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Daniell, Alyssa 1
Batting:
2B: Krapf 1
HR: Leschber 2 ; Burnett 1
RBI: Leschber 2 ; Burnett 2
Base Running:
RUNS: Leschber 2 ; Krapf 1 ; Burnett 1
Game Leaders
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
1
AB
3
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
0
RBI
0
Players Mentioned
RHP/DP
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
UT
/ Softball
OF
/ SoftballINF
/ SoftballOF
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
INF
/ Softball
IF
/ SoftballINF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
OF
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
C
/ Softball
RHP
/ Softball
INF
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