Press Release from the U of O:

OKLAHOMA CITY – After helping the No. 2 University of Oregon softball team stake its first-ever Pac-12 title, senior pitcher Jessica Moore and junior catcher Alexa Peterson were offered tryouts for the USA Softball Women’s National Team Selection Camp in June.

Oregon’s Jessica Moore and Alexa Peterson
GoDucks.com

The duo will compete with +30 athletes for national team positions from June 9-12 at the ASA Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City – held immediately after the Women’s College World Series in OKC (May 30-June 5).

Later this summer, the National Team will play in the World Cup of Softball VIII in Oklahoma City (July 11-14) against squads from Japan, Canada, Australia and Puerto Rico.

The U.S. squad will then travel to the Canadian Open Fastpitch Championship in Surrey, B.C., Canada (July 16-22) and Pan American Games / International Softball Federation World Championship Qualifier in Puerto Rico (August 5-18).

This week, the Salem, Ore., native Peterson ranked top 20 nationally in slugging (seventh, .568), batting (eighth, .464) and slugging (19th, .839), and led the Pac-12 in batting and on-base percentage. The returning All-Region choice also picked up her second Pac-12 Player of the Week honor in April, and is a former All-World Series Tournament Team honoree.

Moore also ranked top 25 nationally this week in wins (20th, 24) and ERA (24th, 1.53) and stood second in the Pac-12 in each category. This season, the Sutter, Calif., native and returning All-American has won two Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week honors, and National Player of the Week awards from both USA Softball and the NFCA.

In collegiate action this weekend, the No. 2 Ducks (45-8, 18-4) cap the regular season at No. 5 Arizona State (44-9, 15-7), with 5 p.m. games on Friday and Saturday, and both will be shown live on the Pac-12 Network.

The next day on Sunday, May 12, the 64-team NCAA Tournament selection show will be aired by ESPNU at 7 p.m. Pacific Time.

Oregon Ducks This Week:

Press Release from the U of O:

Oregon Starting Pitcher Jessica Moore
GoDucks.com

OKLAHOMA CITY – University of Oregon senior Jessica Moore was honored as the USA Softball National Player of the Week honor Tuesday after she posted a 3-0 mark at home last week vs. Oregon State and Seattle.

Helping the Ducks (45-7, 18-3) stake their first-ever Pac-12 title, the Sutter, Calif., native posted nine strikeouts in starts vs. both the Redhawks and Beavers – one shy of her season high.

She also struck out five in her other win vs. returning NCAA Regional finalist OSU.

For the week, she led the team in wins (3), innings (17), complete games (2) and starts (3), and stood second in ERA (0.41) and opposing batting average (.098).

“I’m really honored to be have been selected,” said Moore. “The award adds to the great year that we have had so far, and I’m so glad to be a part of this team. Winning a Pac-12 title was a huge step for this program. It adds to our legacy and gives us extra momentum heading into the future. We’re excited to be starting the final month of the season, and are feeling stronger and stronger.”

All-time for UO, she improved her school career records for wins (97), strikeouts (875), innings (862) and appearances (168), and other top-10 career marks for shutouts (fourth, 18) and complete games (sixth, 74).

On Duck all-time season charts, she moved up to fourth for wins (24) and matched her sophomore mark.

This week she also ranked top 25 nationally in wins (20th, 24) and ERA (24th, 1.53) and stood second in the Pac-12 in each.

At the plate, she boosted the Duck offense with a homer vs. both Seattle (a two-run first-inning blast) and OSU (sixth-inning solo homer) to give her three on the season and six career-wise.

That latter round-tripper in the 2-1 win was her first game-winning RBI of the season and helped her hit .500 for the week (3-for-6) with a team-high 1.500 slugging mark.

“We’re so thrilled that Jess was selected for such a prestigious honor,” said Oregon head coach Mike White. “She has worked very hard the past four years, and has always been a leader on and off the field. The timing of the award is especially fitting after she helped the team win its first conference title at home on Senior Day.”

Tuesday’s award was the first USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Week honor for an Oregon Duck in the 11-year history of the award.

Earlier this week, she picked up the fourth Pac-12 Pitcher of the Week honor of her career and second of the season.

Last month, she was similarly honored with NFCA National Player of the Week laurels after she beat then-No. 17 Arizona twice (including a perfect game in the finale).

Team-wise last week, Oregon scored a pair of wins vs. Seattle (4-0, 6-4) and its second season sweep of Oregon State (2-1, 11-0 (5), 8-0 (5)) the past three years (and sixth ever).

This week, No. 2 UO caps the regular season with three games at No. 5 Arizona State (43-9, 14-7), Thursday-Saturday, May 9-11. The final two games will be televised live by the Pac-12 Network at 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

The next day on Sunday, May 12, the 64-team NCAA Tournament selection show will be aired by ESPNU at 7 p.m. Pacific Time

Oregon Ducks This Week:

In the latest USA Softball poll, Oregon is ranked #2, behind #1 Oklahoma.  The Ducks were ranked #3 in the latest NFCA National Poll.

More from the University of Oregon:

Geoff Thurner/GoDucks.com

EUGENE – After winning its first Pac-12 title in school history, the University of Oregon softball team (45-7, 18-3) climbed to all-time highs this week with its No. 2 and No. 3 positions in the USA Softball and NFCA national polls.

No. 2/3 UO was one of two top-10 ranked teams in the Pac-12 with fellow WCWS returnee and No. 5/5 Arizona State.

Overall, Oregon was one of six league members that ranked top 25 nationally in Tuesday’s USA SB/NFCA polls with No. 11/12 Washington, No. 13/13 Stanford, No. 16/15 UCLA and No. 20/17 California, while Arizona also picked up votes.

For comparison’s sake, a complete list of Pac-12 rankings from the previous USA SB/NFCA edition follows: No. 4/5 Oregon, No. 5/3 Arizona State, No. 12/13 Washington, No. 13/12 California, No. 16/17 Stanford and No. 17/15 UCLA.

Six other Duck non-conference foes in 2013 were also tabbed top 25 this week by the USA SB/NFCA – No. 1/1 Oklahoma, No. 3/2 Florida, No. 8/6 Michigan, No. 9/10 LSU, No. 14/16 Nebraska and No. 24/20 Hawai’i.

Altogether, No. 1/1 Oklahoma remained atop the national rankings, and the remaining top-five teams included No. 3/2 Florida, No. 4/4 Tennessee and No. 5/5 Arizona State.

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This week, Oregon caps the regular season with three games at No. 5 Arizona State (43-9, 14-7), Thursday-Saturday, May 9-11. The final two games will be televised live by the Pac-12 Network at 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

The next day on Sunday, May 12, the 64-team NCAA Tournament selection show will be aired by ESPNU at 7 p.m. Pacific Time.

Oregon Ducks This Week: