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Sophomore DeAnn Young is currently second for the Beavers with four home runs. She will be looked upon to help OSU defeat the Ducks

No. 17 softball takes on No. 10 Ducks in Civil War in Eugene

Beavers enter this weekend's series tied with Oregon in conference play at 2-1 apiece

By: The Daily Barometer

Posted: 4/6/07

With a successful conference weekend at the OSU Softball Complex last week, the No. 17 Oregon State softball team will travel to Eugene to take on No. 10 Oregon for a two-game series on Friday and Saturday. The Beavers, who enter this weekend with a 28-11 record, will take on a resurging Duck squad that has jumped out of the gates this season with an impressive 36-4 record.

The Beavers are coming off a positive weekend series at home against No. 14 Stanford and two games with California. After losing the Friday opener to the Cardinal, 2-1, OSU came back to take both games over the Bears, winning 4-3 and 6-0, respectively.

"Any time you can get a win it's a good thing," coach Kirk Walker said. "I'm pleased we came out aggressively and put runs on the board early on."

Senior pitcher Brianne McGowan broke the school's all-time wins record and career shutouts mark when the Beavers topped California on Sunday. McGowan has 92 victories now in her career, surpassing Tarrah Beyster (1997-00), and her 33 shutouts broke the 22-year-old record held by Joan Harvey (1982-85). For her efforts from the circle on the week, McGowan was named the Pac-10 Pitcher of the Week for the sixth time in her career. She also needs more 2 saves and 14 strikeouts to be atop the school's all-time list in those categories.

"It's a great honor for Brianne, I'm very proud of her," Walker said. "We just hope she keeps building on the records throughout the rest of her career."

A key for the Beavers this weekend is for them to continue their recent pitching success against the Ducks. Oregon State's current pitching staff of seniors Brianne McGowan and Ta'Tyana McElroy hold a perfect 7-0 combined record in their careers against Oregon. McGowan boasts a 5-0 record and one save against the Ducks and the Reno, Nevada native has struck out 39 batters in 34.0 innings pitched in the Civil War series. They will have to contain a strong Duck offense led by Jennifer Salling (.524 average, eight home runs, 54 RBI) and Sara-Jane Jenkins (.417 average, 21 RBI, 24 SB), who are both having all-conference seasons.

Offensively, Oregon State will be led by junior Cambria Miranda and senior Natalie Johnson. Miranda is leading the squad with a .361 average, and is also tops with seven home runs and 36 runs batted in. Johnson has also enjoyed a strong season from the plate with a .352 average and is tied for the Pac-10 lead with 43 sacrifice bunts. They will have to face a tough duo of starting pitchers in Alicia Cook (17-1 record, 0.77 ERA) and Melissa Cook (19-3, 1.55 ERA), who have been one of the better pitching tandams in the conference.

Against Oregon, which is OSU's longest running opponent at 151 games, the series is knotted at 75-75-1, but the Beavers boast a 27-16-1 record under the direction of head coach Kirk Walker. Oregon State swept the season series against the Ducks the past two years and the Beavers have won seven straight in the Civil War. Five of the last six Civil War meetings, however, have been decided by one run, and Oregon State has been victorious in all five games.

The winner of the series will brake a tie in the Pac-10 standings.

Friday's game will begin at 3 pm at Lowe Field and will continue the next day at 1 pm.