On Monday, the Notre Dame softball team, nearing the end of its season, lost to Oregon at home. The Irish entered the game 23-29-1 overall and 7-17 in the ACC, while Oregon entered 44-5 overall and 17-2 in the Big Ten.
Kicking off the first inning, sophomore pitcher Kami Kamzik took the circle for the Irish. Throughout the inning, Oregon’s offense was on point and put up five runs. In the bottom of the inning, Notre Dame was unable to score, keeping the score in Oregon’s favor.
Kamzik started in the circle again in the top of the second before senior pitcher Shannon Becker took over. The Irish held the Oregon offense and turned around to add a run of their own as senior catcher Rachel Allen homered over the center-field fence to make the score 5-1.
Oregon was not phased as it added on two more runs after forcing errors on the Irish defense. Another double from the Ducks allowed them to add an additional two runs to bring the score to 9-1. Notre Dame was unable to score in the latter end of the inning.
Going into the fourth inning, freshman lefty Brianne Weiss took over on the mound for the Irish, but the Ducks quickly got a runner into scoring position. A hard single to right field allowed the Ducks to earn their 10th run of the game. The Oregon defense continued to hold the Irish offense in the bottom of the fourth, as the score remained 10-1.
After preventing the Ducks from scoring in the top of the fifth, the Irish looked to make a comeback in the bottom as senior utility player Jane Kronenberger made it on base after a single to right field. Junior pitcher Paige Cowley flied out, and sophomore outfielder Christina Willemssen struck out to end the inning. As such, the Ducks took the final 10-1 win.
On offense, Allen led the team with a solo home run. In the circle, Notre Dame relied on three pitchers, Kamzik, Becker, with two strikeouts, and Weiss, also with two strikeouts.
With this loss, Notre Dame falls to 23-30-1 overall on the season, while Oregon improves to 45-5.
The team now looks ahead to their May 1 Bowling Green rescheduled game. Following the game, the Irish look to compete in the ACC Softball Championship beginning on May 7.
