Your Oregon Ducks faced off against the Indiana Hoosiers on Monday afternoon, and oooooh boy was it a weird one. Right from the jump, the Ducks found themselves in an unfamiliar 3-0 deficit, thanks to a 3-run homer by Indiana. And after stranding a runner in both the top of the 2nd and 3rd innings, the Hoosiers would make them pay by smacking a grand slam to center field, and ballooning the lead to 7-0 Indiana after 3 innings.
But that’s when things would start to get crazy. In the top of the 4th,
Oregon would score a pair of runs on a 1-out single from Braiesey Rosa, another on a Kaylynn Jones sac-fly, two more on a triple from Elon Butler, and two more on an RBI single from Amari Harper and an RBI double from Stefini Ma’Ake. 7-7, all tied up in the span of half an inning. But the Hoosiers would strike back immediately, with Indiana hitting another homerun, a 2-run shot this time, and giving them the lead back at 9-7.
But the Ducks would not be kept down long, scoring four more runs in the 5th inning, on an Emma Cox RBI single and a Kaylynn Jones three-run blast to put Oregon back on top 11-9. Then in the 6th, they would add on to their lead, scoring a run on a bases-loaded walk from Jones, a monster grand-slam from Elon Butler, and then a solo shot from Amari Harper two pitches later. In the same game they were down 7-0, they now lead 17-9. Insanity.
But, once again, the Hoosiers wouldn’t go down without a fight. They would score two runs in the bottom of the 6th, cutting the lead to 17-11. But the Ducks weren’t finished yet. They would load the bases to lead off the 7th, before clearing them in one swing from Emma Cox, and suddenly it was 21-11. They would grab three more insurance runs in the inning on a bunt-single (and slew of errors by Indiana) from Butler, a sac-fly from Harper, and an RBI single from Trinity Holden, giving the Ducks a 24-11 lead. The Hoosiers would get one back in the bottom of the 7th, but that would be all, and the Ducks would end up winning 24-12.
Told you it was a weird one. This team is ridiculous. Not every team can go from being down 7-0 after three innings, and still end up winning by 12 runs, while scoring the most runs in a game in program history. That’s not normal. It’s something that only the best of the best programs can do, and I firmly believe that (barring injury) this team has a legitimate chance to be National Champions. They’ve got all the pieces. They just need to consistently put this kind of heart and effort into every single game.
As always, ‘Sco Ducks.
