Loyola Marymount upsets fifth-ranked Ducks to snap nine-game win streak

EUGENE, Ore. — On an overcast and rainy afternoon at Jane Sanders Stadium, the No. 5 Oregon Ducks played a game reflective of Monday's grey weather. After falling behind in the second inning against the Loyola Marymount Lions, Oregon was never able to mount a comeback, ultimately suffering its fourth loss of the season by a score of 5-3 to snap a nine-game winning streak.

"What's tough today is that we talk about a three cylinders of offense, defense, and pitching," head coach Melyssa Lombardi said after the game. "And not one of the three was good enough to win today."

The Ducks (35-4, 9-1) had been riding high after a sweep of the reigning Big Ten champion Michigan Wolverines over the weekend, capped off by a 9-1 mercy-rule win in the series' final game, but weren't able to keep that momentum going into Monday's one-off.

Early on, Oregon looked like it would make quick work of yet another non-conference opponent. Sophomore Taylour Spencer, making her first start in over two weeks, cruised through the top of the first, striking out center fielder Justine Lambert to lead off the game. She was given a two-run lead to work with in the bottom of the inning when Kai Luschar led off the game with a walk before stealing second and coming home to score thanks to an error after Paige Sinicki's bunt. Sinicki would come across for the second run after swiping a base herself and scoring on a groundout to short. 

Luschar's steal was not only her 41st of the season, but Oregon's 126th as a team, tying her with Suzie Barnes' single-season program record from 2007 while helping the Ducks match the team record from the same year. Sinicki's stolen base gave Oregon its 127th of the season to break the record. Luschar swiped another bag in the third inning, her 42nd to officially take Oregon's single-season stolen base crown.

"Our speed on the basepaths obviously gives us opportunities to win every single game," Lombardi said.

Spencer's strong start to the game wouldn't last long, as a triple and a double to lead off the second inning plated a run for the Lions. Spencer recorded the first two outs of the inning, but another single gave LMU (17-20, 2-0) the lead before third baseman Emma Guitierrez swatted a solo shot over Luschar's head in left field to make it 4-2. Lyndsey Grein entered in relief, quickly recording a strikeout to end the inning, but the damage had already been done.

From there, Oregon's bats fell quiet. Braiesey Rosa gave the Ducks a two-out single in the second, but they wouldn't record their next hit until the sixth inning, only totaling three in the game. Luschar walked and stole second to lead off the third, coming all the way around to score from second on Rylee McCoy's deep sacrifice fly, but that would be Oregon's final run of the game as its offense was never able to regain a rhythm. 

Grein was nearly flawless in relief, allowing a solo homer in the fourth as her only hit while striking out four across 5 ⅓ innings. But her efforts would ultimately be in vain, with her offense never able to strike back against LMU's pitching. Lindsay O'Dell entered to relieve Angela Carrera after three innings of three-run ball and shut down the Oregon bats, allowing just two hits across 3 ⅔ scoreless frames before giving way to Jessica Hubbard for the final out.

"They played great," Lombardi said of LMU. "They played great defense, they were clutch with their offense, and their pitching gave them the opportunity to win."

The Ducks were able to bring the winning run to the plate in the seventh after Dezianna Patmon walked to lead off the inning and Remmington Hewitt singled, but Luschar would ground into a fielder's choice before Sinicki flew out to end the game.

"Will we grow from this? 100 percent," Lombardi said of her team. "I know this game right here will do big, big things for us."

Oregon will be on the road this weekend, heading to Minnesota for the third of the four Big Ten series that they will play away from Jane Sanders Stadium this season. The Ducks will then head to Corvallis next Wednesday to finish their season series with the Oregon State Beavers before hosting the No. 8 UCLA Bruins for one of the biggest series that the Big Ten will see this year.