Season Comes To An End In Regionals

Saturday, May 16

Eugene, OR

2:00 PM

University of Oregon

41-13

Mississippi State

40-18

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Runs R	Hits H	Errors E
Mississippi State	2	0	1	1	0	0	0	4	7	0
Oregon	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Photo by: Rob Moseley/GoDucks.com

05/17/26 | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2 Eugene Regional Game 3 - Mississippi State 4, Oregon 0 Eugene Regional Game 5: Saint Mary's 5, #14 Oregon 4 Photo Gallery Photo Gallery 2

The Oregon softball team dropped a pair of games Saturday to Mississippi State and Saint Mary's.

By: Rob Moseley

EUGENE, Ore. — Having gone to battle without one of their fiercest warriors at the most untimely of instances, the Oregon softball team nevertheless fought to the end.

For the Ducks, that came Saturday in an NCAA Regional they hosted at Jane Sanders Stadium. Playing without ace pitcher Lyndsey Grein due to an eye issue, the UO softball team dropped games to Mississippi State and Saint Mary's on Saturday, bringing their 2026 season to a close.

An infection sidelined Grein entering the weekend, just days after she'd been named first-team all-region. In her stead, the Ducks won their regional opener Friday over Idaho State before the two losses Saturday.

"For us it was about getting it done to give Lyndsey an opportunity to pitch again at the Super Regional," UO coach Melyssa Lombardi said. "I mean, that's all we talked about, that's all we wanted. We gave it everything we've got, and you know, sometimes things just don't go your way."

Saturday began with a 4-0 loss to Mississippi State, in which the Ducks fell victim to a no-hitter. They quickly made sure that didn't happen again against Saint Mary's, as Elon Butler homered to lead off the game. But Oregon couldn't protect a 3-0 lead as the Gaels rallied for four in the fourth on the way to a 5-4 victory.

There were highlights to celebrate, including homers by Butler and Katie Flannery that built the 3-0 lead, and encouraging moments for Taylour Spencer in the circle that echoed her regional appearance at Oklahoma two years earlier.

Season Finale

But ultimately, the enduring image of the 2026 regional for the Ducks may be that of Grein, in the dugout in street clothes, a bandage protecting the eye that prevented her from closing out the season with her team.

"We all came out this weekend, and we knew that we were playing for Lynds — we really wanted to come out and give everything that we could, so that she could see us continue," fellow senior pitcher Elise Sokolsky said. "And just to know that that's what we were playing for — something bigger than ourselves — this is what we're all about. So it may not have gone our way in the end, but I think we're all really proud of how we came out to keep playing for her, to keep playing for each other."

That attitude helped fuel a remarkable senior season that Butler put a period on Saturday. In her only spring with the Ducks, she set or tied six school hitting records; her homer to lead off Saturday's finale was her UO record-tying 19th, and it brought her around for her 66th run of the season, breaking the record set a year before by Kai Luschar.

"I feel like I spent a lot of years of my career kind of doubting my abilities and what I could do on the field," Butler said. "And then this year I kind of just said, I'm gonna full send it, and I'm gonna have the best year of my life — regardless if it's me doing well softball-wise or just me just being better as a person.

"And I feel like this place has just filled a void in my heart that's been empty for a really long time, and it truly was the craziest ride and the best ride I've ever really had in my softball career."

Season Finale

Like Grein, Butler earned all-region first-team honors as a senior. Likewise, outfielder and fellow one-year transfer Amari Harper did as well — and all three are set up for pro opportunities this summer, with Harper having earned a "Golden Ticket" into the AUSL draft earlier this spring.

"The girls here have really opened up their hearts and their lives to one-year transfers like me and Elon, and we really kind of dove into that," Harper said. "So it was awesome to just get to create the relationships with them and kind of just build on that for the next few years."
For Lombardi and her coaching staff, there will be tears to dry from Saturday's losses. But there will be some smiles too, at what the near future holds.

Oregon's starting lineup against the Gaels featured five sophomores and a freshman. And the Ducks got big contributions from a pair of juniors — Flannery, whose two-run homer in the top of the fourth made it 3-0, and Spencer, whose 4.1 innings against Saint Mary's were her most in a game since February.

Season Finale

"This hurts right now," Lombardi said. "It hurts all of us. But I think about for Taylour, and what it does for her going into her senior year. You know, it just — I've been doing this for a long time, and sometimes you don't get what you want and you don't understand it. But it's also setting up things that are coming down the road, and I believe that.

"I think what we went through this weekend, and the fight that they had, it's setting Taylour up to return for a great senior year. It's setting these guys up for what's next. You know, that we can do hard and challenging things, and it's okay. We're going to get it figured out."

There will be time later to take stock of what's returning, and get excited about what the future holds for later versions of Oregon softball. Saturday was for handling disappointment, and thinking about what might have been had circumstances been a little different.

"I'm just heartbroken," Lombardi said. "I love this team. Everything we've asked from them all year long, they've given to us and have never wavered. … Obviously, we want to win. We gave our heart and soul out there, and it just didn't go our way."