CATHEDRAL CITY, Calif. – Coming off a 5-0 Clearwater Invitational and riding a six-game winning streak, No. 25/23 San Diego State softball brought a lot of momentum into this weekend’s Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic at the Big League Dreams Fields. Waiting for the Aztecs in their opening game of the tournament was a red-hot No. 19/19 Oregon squad that had already played and won three games in Cathedral City, including a shutout win against No. 5/7 Tennessee. The Ducks scored five runs in the second inning and led the rest of the way as the Aztecs fell 7-2, suffering their first loss in two weeks.
Neither team got a hit in the first inning. The only baserunner for either side was Cali Decker, who reached on a walk.
The Ducks (14-1) struck in the second inning. Rylee McCoy led off with a double to right center. She moved to third on a Stefini Ma’ake single. Aztec starter Cece Cellura induced a popup to shortstop for the first out. Kedre Luschar singled with a squeeze bunt that scored McCoy and advanced Ma’ake to second. Paige Sinicki followed it up with a single, advancing to third on an error as both runners scored. Cellura got a groundout to first base, but Sinicki scored on the play. Kai Luschar stepped up to the plate and doubled, scoring on a Dezianna Patmon bunt single but SDSU catcher Cali Decker threw out Patmon trying to advance to second to prevent any more damage. The Aztecs (8-3) scored a run of their own in the bottom of the frame. Jazmin Williams led off the inning with a single and came all the way around to score when Shannon Cunningham doubled through the right side.
In the third, a groundout began the inning for the Ducks. After a pair of singles, Grace Uribe replaced Cellura in the circle. A walk loaded the bases before Uribe got Kedre Luschar to hit a ground ball to short and Quinn Waiki got the out at home. A flyout allowed Uribe to escape the jam. Uribe walked and Decker singled in the bottom of the third, but they were left stranded in scoring position.
Uribe worked around a two-out walk, capping off a scoreless fourth with a strikeout.
Oregon added to its lead in the fifth. McCoy began the inning with a double down the left field line. Uribe struck out the next hitter, Ma’ake. Katie Flannery reached on an error and stole second base. Kedre Luschar followed her up with a single back up the middle, scoring Regan Legg, who ran for McCoy and leaving runners on second and third with just one out. Uribe limited the damage with a popup and a groundout to end the frame.
Patmon homered to left field in the sixth inning to extend Oregon’s advantage to 7-1. Angie Yellen singled with one out in the bottom of the inning and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. That ended the day for Elise Sokolsky, who allowed two runs on four hits and two walks while striking out six over 5.1 innings. Lyndsey Grein entered the circle for Oregon. Yellen stole third as well and Ducks catcher Emma Cox’s throw sailed into left field, allowing Yellen to score on the play. Williams singled in the inning as well, but nothing came of it.
Ava Schaffel entered the circle for the seventh. She struck out Ma’ake, the first batter she faced, and kept the Ducks off the board in the seventh to give the San Diego State bats a chance in the bottom of the inning. Waiki led off with a single to left. A fielder’s choice accounted for the first out of the frame. Julie Holcomb ran at first base and moved into scoring position on a groundout, but the Aztecs were unable to continue the rally, falling 7-2.
THE NOTE
San Diego State suffered its first defeat on a neutral field this season, falling to 7-1 in games that are neither home nor away.
UP NEXT
The Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic rolls on for the remainder of the weekend. The Aztecs face UC Santa Barbara at 5 p.m. and UC Riverside at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday and Saint Mary’s at 11 a.m. and Hawai’i at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
No. 19/19 Oregon 7, No. 25/23 San Diego State 2
Oregon (14-1) 050 011 0 – 7 11 1
San Diego State (8-3) 010 001 0 – 2 6 2
W – Sokolsky, 3-0; L – Cellura, 4-2
HR: Patmon, Oregon (3)