The Oregon Ducks softball team began Big Ten conference play with an 8-2 victory over Penn State on March 13 at Jane Sanders Stadium in Eugene. Lyndsey Grein led the Ducks from the pitching circle, recording a two-hitter and striking out 12 batters, while Elon Butler and Amari Harper each hit two home runs.
The win marks a strong start for the defending Big Ten champions as they look to repeat their title run. The offensive effort was highlighted by Oregon’s No. 2 through No. 6 hitters—Kaylynn Jones, Butler, Harper, Rylee McCoy, and Stefini Ma’ake—who combined for five home runs and drove in all eight of the team’s runs.
“Absolutely, I think hitting is contagious,” said Butler, who now leads the team with eight home runs this season. “When someone hits in front of you, it just gives you that extra belief in yourself, that you can do it as well. So it’s definitely contagious. You saw that today.”
Harper added her perspective on the team’s performance: “Even a lot of our base hits were hard,” she said. “(It’s nice) just knowing that if one person doesn’t have their best day, we have eight other people in the lineup that can pick you up. We were backing each other up left and right.” McCoy also contributed a home run during back-to-back shots with Harper in the fourth inning.
Oregon coach Melyssa Lombardi shared a personal moment after her son Gianni scored 21 points in a high school basketball state semifinal game earlier that day. “What’s pretty cool is, Gianni came here when he was 9 years old, and he is like a little brother to all of these guys,” Lombardi said. “And they’re like big sisters to him… So to get two big wins for state, and then to get a big win today (in softball), the Lombardis are feeling good.”
Looking ahead, Oregon will host Penn State again for game two of their series on Saturday.
