(Photo Courtesy of Oregon Athletics)
CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. – The sixth-ranked Oregon softball team needed extra innings to beat No. 23 Notre Dame, 2-0, in a thrilling pitchers’ duel on Sunday morning at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic. The win gave the Ducks their 13th straight of the season, tying last year’s 13-game win streak, which is the longest under head coach Mike White.
Cheridan Hawkins pitched her sixth complete game of the season, fanning 14 batters in nine innings of work, scattering three hits.
Courtney Ceo slapped a single up the middle with out to get on base for Oregon (13-1) before getting thrown out at home trying to extend Alexa Peterson’s bunt single past the reaches of the Irish second baseman.
After giving up a walk on four-straight balls, Hawkins got into a groove and sent the next three batters down in order a la strike out. The sophomore started the second frame with punch out before Micaela Arizmendi fouled out by the first base bag.
Janie Takeda roped a double into left center that went past the center fielder and got to third but was gunned down after getting waved to go for the inside-the-park homerun to end the inning.
Hawkins labored in the bottom half of the third inning but was able to get out of the inning with a strike out and foul out at first. The Irish’s Laura Winter started getting into a groove of her own, sending the Oregon batters down in order in both the third and fifth.
Notre Dame (10-3) threatened in the bottom of the fifth with a leadoff double by Arizmendi. She advanced to third on the sac-bunt, but a pop up to second and a huge strike out kept the game scoreless heading into the top of the sixth.
With two outs in the top of the sixth, Ceo hustled down the line to beat out the throw from short and stole second, but Alyssa Peterson got fooled on a pitch from Winters to end the Oregon rally.
The Irish’s Katey Haus was able to get a two-out single after Nikki Udria wasn’t able to get the ball to first in time after having to go from deep at short to get the ball by second. Hawkins however took care of business once again, getting Winters to strike out for the third time in the game.
Back in the circle, Winters worked a quick 1-2-3 inning for ND to send the scoreless game into the bottom of the second. Hawkins returned to circle for Oregon and struck out the side and forced the game into extra innings with the international tie breaker in affect.
With Gillespie starting out at second, Koral Costa laid down a sac-bunt between the pitcher and first baseman to advance Gillespie to third. Jamie Rae Sullivan and Sara Goodrum weren’t able to plate Gillespie from third as both batters struck out.
With a runner on third, White opted for back-to-back intentional walks to pitch and got Haus to fly out to center to send the game to the top of the ninth.
Takeda hit a bloop single over the shortstop’s head and then stole second to put runners on second and third for Ceo with no outs. Ceo scored Udria on a single to short and advanced to second after she caught the Irish defense sleeping. Alexa Peterson scored Takeda on a sac-fly deep into center field, advancing Ceo to third in the process.
Winters stopped the bleeding for Notre Dame with a ground out and pop up from Cuico, but not before Oregon put two runs on the board.
ND’s leadoff batter in the bottom of the ninth popped a ball up to Udria that she couldn’t get a hold of, but caught Sullivan in between second and third on the play and was finally chased down at second on the run down. Hawkins recorded her 14th strikeout of the game against Sorlie and sealed the win after Arizmendi flied out to left.
Oregon looks to go undefeated at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in its final game against UC Davis at 11:30 a.m.
