Oregon Softball Schedule 2024: What to Know

One of college softball’s most successful programs for much of the 2010s, Oregon returned to prominence in a big way in 2023. What does 2024 look like?

Feb 12, 2024 by Briar Napier

Oregon Softball Schedule 2024: What to Know

Quack, quack, the Ducks are back.

One of college softball’s most successful programs for much of the 2010s, Oregon returned to prominence in a big way in 2023 by being a round away from a return to Oklahoma City.

Getting back to the Women’s College World Series is the next logical step.

It’s the Ducks' swan song in the Pac-12, one of the most storied and stacked leagues in the sport’s history. For them to close the show with a conference title would be the sweetest of endings.

Here’s all you need to know about Oregon softball ahead of the 2024 season.

How Did Oregon Softball Do In 2023?

Back in the Super Regional round for the first time in five years, Oregon got there by pulling off one of the top upsets of the regional round as an unseeded team, beating No. 11 seed and host, Arkansas, twice in the Fayetteville Regional. That earned the Ducks a clash with No. 6 Oklahoma State in the Stillwater Super Regional for a spot at the Women’s College World Series.

The Cowgirls swept the Ducks to end Oregon’s dreams of a trip to Oklahoma City, but it still was a solid ending for the Ducks’ most successful season on the diamond in five years.

Oregon went 38-17 overall and finished fifth in the Pac-12 Conference with a 14-10 league record, most notably defeating Florida at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic and winning at least one game in conference play against the likes of UCLA, Stanford and Washington.

Infielder Allee Bunker and catcher Terra McGowan were the Ducks’ representatives on the All-Pac 12 first team at season’s end.

Who Coaches Oregon Softball?

Melyssa Lombardi is the head coach of Oregon softball.

Lombardi played at OU and then spent 21 years on the staff of (and learning from) legendary Sooners coach Patty Gasso, considered by many to be college softball’s greatest coach of all time and the leader of the three-time defending national champions.

Lombardi’s first couple of seasons in Eugene were a bit rocky. Oregon had a rare losing record of 22-30 during her first year (2019), while a promising 22-2 start in 2020 was shelved along with the rest of the sport that spring due to COVID-19.

Since then, the Ducks have been building their way back up to the national stage.

Oregon made it back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in Lombardi’s tenure after a 40-win season in 2021, then made it back to a Regional a year later, before getting over the hump and making it to a Super Regional in 2023.

Has Oregon Softball Ever Won the Women’s College World Series?

No, Oregon softball has never won the Women’s College World Series, but it has appeared in the WCWS six times, most recently in 2018.

Five of those appearances–2012, 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2018–came under now-Texas coach Mike White, with best finishes of third in 2014 and 2017.

Notable Returning Players

Ariel Carlson, OF

The hometown girl from Eugene had a great year for the Ducks last season, but her performances during the postseason were vitally important in Oregon getting back to a place it hadn’t been for some time.

Ariel Carlson finished second on the team in batting average (.333), doubles (10) and slugging percentage (.604), but in the Ducks’ upset victory in the Fayetteville Regional, she turned it on and hit an eye-popping .636 with two homers and 10 RBIs, helping Oregon take down the Razorbacks on the road.

Without Bunker or McGowan in the lineup anymore, that leaves Carlson as the Ducks’ top returning hitter for both average and power, as she finished behind both in home runs with nine long bombs on the season.

Morgan Scott, RHP

A transfer from UNC Greensboro (where she was a two-time Southern Conference Pitcher of the Year) before the 2023 season, Morgan Scott was tasked with a major jump in competition to one of the best leagues in college softball last year and thrived, becoming an All-Pac 12 second-team nominee in her first season in Eugene.

Though not an outright dominant pitcher when just looking at her stats on the surface, as she went 13-7, had a 2.83 ERA and threw 90 strikeouts in 128 2/3 innings across 20 starts, you begin to understand more about Scott’s value to the Ducks’ rotation once you really start crunching her numbers.

Her seven saves, for instance, led the Pac-12 and were among the nation’s best, and her low walk rate, with just 22 all season, showcased her skillful control and command. Oh, and complete-game wins against UCLA and Stanford, arguably Oregon’s two best victories of 2023, showed that Scott can go deep into games and thrive, too.

Notable Newcomers

Emma Kauf, C

A two-time All-Atlantic Coast Conference first-team pick who has batted for a career .344 average, 29 home runs and 114 RBIs? Yep, those stats and accolades will get you some kudos as a notable newcomer.

One of the best graduate transfers available in the portal this past offseason, the Ducks snagged the Nebraska native’s commitment after she had a stellar four-year career with the Yellow Jackets

Emma Kauf brings contact, power and speed (13 stolen bases in 2023) to the Oregon lineup.

Elise Sokolsky, RHP

OK, so Elise Sokolsky is not technically a newcomer, as she has played in some games for the Ducks, though Oregon and its fans barely have gotten to see her work.

The Arkansas native transferred from UConn going into her sophomore season with a lot of hype. She was a unanimous All-BIG EAST first-team selection after leading the league in wins and strikeouts as a freshman, being one of the main drivers behind the Huskies winning the BIG EAST regular-season title in 2022.

But her sophomore season, and first in Eugene, was over almost as soon as it had begun, with Sokolsky forced to take a redshirt after suffering an injury and being shut down after just 15 innings pitched.

Back in the circle and with better health going into the 2024 campaign, Sokolsky will be aiming to be one of Oregon’s top options on the mound and a big part of the Ducks’ staff.