Tucson, AZ – No. 7 ranked Oregon State was unable to overcome No. 3 ranked University of Arizona’s hot-hitting as the Wildcats cruised to an 11-2 5-inning victory in Saturday’s Pacific-10 Conference softball regular season finale.
Oregon State finishes the regular season with a 38-13 overall record and 10-10 Pacific-10 Conference mark, while Arizona has won 10 straight games en route to a 44-9 overall record and 15-6 conference finish. The Wildcats earned second place in the Pac-10 standings, while the Beavers dropped to fifth place. OSU has recorded 10 or more Pac-10 victories just four times since joining the conference in 1987.
Back-to-back 2-out RBI singles to left field from and gave Oregon State an early 2-0 cushion in the opening half of the first inning, but the lead was short-lived as the Wildcats’ first four batters scored in the bottom of the frame. Wildcat sophomore Callista Balko launched a 3-run home run into the 12th row of the left field bleachers to give UA a 4-2 lead.
Arizona used two more home runs, a solo shot from Laine Roth and a 2-run dinger from Kristie Fox to extend its advantage to 7-2 in the bottom of the second.
The Wildcats continued the hitting barrage in the bottom of the third after a 2-RBI double from Sam Banister knocked Beaver starter (14-7) from the circle. The Wildcats pushed the lead to 10-2 when Banister scored an un-earned run.
Arizona made the final margin 11-2 after compiling three hits and a run in the bottom of the fourth.
The game marked the first time on the season that Oregon State was run-ruled. Of the Beavers’ 13 losses on the year, six were by just one run.
Five different Beaver players recorded hits on the day and senior went 2-for-3 from the plate.
Oregon State now awaits word on where the Beavers will open their eighth consecutive berth in the NCAA Regional Tournament. The NCAA Selection Show will air Sunday at 12:30 p.m. PDT on ESPNews. The tournament field consists of 64 teams sent to 16 different regional sites. The Beavers have extended a bid to host the tournament’s first round.
GAME RESULTS:
No. 7 Oregon State – 200 00 – 2 6 1
No. 3 Arizona – 433 1 x – 11 11 0
McElroy, Klever (3) and Allen (OSU), Wolfe and Balko (UA). Win – Wolfe (1-1). Loss – McElroy (14-7). 2B – Banister (UA), Lelas (UA). HR – Balko (UA), Fox (UA), Roth (UA).
