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Oregon Ducks baseball and softball take a break from conference play today, with baseball traveling north to battle the Pilots at Joe Etzel field and softball playing their first game of a seven-game homestand at Jane Sanders stadium.
The Ducks teams are going in different trajectories at this point in their respective season. Baseball has been battling and playing well, with a number of rallies to take games they were trailing in the past few weeks. Ducks softball has lost 8 of their last 9 games, but that shouldn’t be terribly surprising, given that they have the fifth most difficult schedule in the nation and lost their ace pitcher for the season before it even began. Both teams have played their opponents earlier this season and came away with easy victories, so look for more of the same tonight.
The Pilots last played the Ducks on March 8th in Eugene, and were obliterated by Oregon 18-2. Oregon has since been battle tested and has largely risen to the challenge. Portland currently sits in the middle of the WCC standings. Today should be a relatively easy victory for Oregon before they resume conference play against Washington State this weekend.
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Portland State softball returns for their second match of the season against the Ducks, having last played Oregon for the home opener in Eugene on March 11th. That game was a run-rule victory for the Ducks, 7-0.
The Vikings are currently tied for 2nd place in the Big Sky conference, sitting at an 8-4 conference record. Weber State is still undefeated in conference play at 8-0. Olivia Grey is the ace for the Portland State staff, with a 15-5 record and a 1.55 ERA. The Viking offense is lead by Logan Rickenbach and Emily Johansen, both of whom are the only batters with a .301+ average, and they lead the team in doubles and home runs.