Oregon Softball: Ducks Get Defensive In Win vs Houston
The Oregon Ducks had to get Defensive in a 1-0 win over Houston on Thursday in the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge.
Oregon Softball opened the season taking care of opponents to the tune of 17 home runs and a team batting average at .372. Head Coach Mike White was cautiously optimistic about his team being an Offensive Powerhouse vs a team built for Defense. It was the latter that won the game against Houston.
The Oregon Ducks were held to just four hits by the top of their lineup. Gwen Svekis came through with an RBI, the lone run of the game. Starter Megan Kleist threw a complete game one-hitter and struck out 10 to earn her third win of the season.
Kleist showed her experience in the circle in just the seventh game of the season. She threw first-pitch strikes for 17 of the 25 batters she faced. She threw 84 total pitches and finished the game with 7 assists to keep Houston Hitters off the bases. Houston never had a batter in scoring position for the entire game.
This was the type of contest that Oregon needed as an early season test. After having four run-ruled games last week to get to 6-0 on the season, their 7th game was a Defensive Test by an unranked team that the Ducks played well enough to come away with the win.
Next: Oregon Ducks Look To Make Their Move In The Pac-12 vs USC
Oregon continues to play in the Puerto Vallarta Challenge with a double-header on Friday. The Ducks face Rutgers first at 3 pm Pacific Time followed by a game with Texas at 6 pm Pacific Time.