CORVALLIS, Ore. – Stanford's bats exploded for four homers and 14 hits, as the Cardinal beat Oregon State 13-3 to secure a fifth-straight Pac-12 series win to open the season. Stanford sits at 34-6 on the season and 13-1 in conference play.
The Cardinal has now won 13 or more Pac-12 games in consecutive seasons for the second time in program history. Stanford previously went 13-8 in back-to-back seasons in 2004 and 2005. Additionally, the team's 38 conference wins over the last three seasons are the most of any three-season stretch in program history.
The Card's afternoon started with a nearly three-hour rain delay, starting at 4:45 p.m. PT after being originally scheduled for 2:00 p.m. PT.
Despite the delay, Stanford started strong for the second-straight day. Senior Aly Kaneshiro crushed a homer well beyond the left-field fence, scoring freshman Ava Gall to make it a 2-0 lead after the top of the first.
Stanford started with a first-run homer yesterday, coming off the bat of Gall.
Sophomore Kyra Chan went yard again for the Cardinal, blasting her first career homer in the top of the third to score Kaneshiro and freshman Kiley Buckley. The three-run shot made it a 5-0 Stanford lead.
Chan has now picked up multiple hits in seven of the last 10 games, scoring 10 runs and driving in 11 in the stretch.
The Beavers got on the scoreboard with three runs in the bottom of the fourth to make it a 5-3 game. The run ended a streak of 34.2 scoreless innings in Pac-12 play for the Cardinal pitching staff.
Stanford answered with a pair of runs in the top of the fifth, with grad student Kaitlyn Lim singling to drive in one, and Chan coming around to score from first on an error in the outfield.
Lim then came home on a passed ball, making it an 8-3 lead.
The Card kept pouring it on in the sixth, with junior Camryn Carmouche pinch hitting and crushing her first home run of the season to make it 9-3. Carmouche pinch hit last weekend against Arizona State, driving in two with a single.
Four batters later, sophomore Taryn Kern stepped into the box with the bases loaded and two outs. Kern blasted a ball over the centerfield fence for a grand slam to make it 13-3.
Freshman pitcher Alyssa Houston entered at the start of the fifth inning, allowing just one hit in two scoreless frames to keep the lead. Senior Regan Krause earned the win, starting and allowing three runs in four innings.
Stanford's four homers were the most in a single game since hitting six against Georgia Tech on February 15.
The series wraps up tomorrow, with first pitch scheduled for 12:00 p.m. PT, and can be seen on Pac-12 Insider.