Oregon
Lyndsey Grein’s ‘no-way mentality’ sends Oregon past Ole Miss at WCWS
OKLAHOMA CITY — On a night filled with career-highs for Lyndsey Grein in the circle, it was the actions Oregon’s ace took when she wasn’t pitching that may have been the biggest difference in her latest masterpiece performance, which kept the Ducks alive at the Women’s College World Series.
With Rylee McCoy committing two early errors in her first game back at first base since taking a line drive to the face in the Eugene Regional final against Stanford, it was Grein who consoled the All-American freshman, who was later moved to designated player.
After getting out of a two-on, two-out jam in the top of the tenth, it was Grein who spoke up in Oregon’s huddle even after she threw 94 strikes out of 144 pitches over 9 1/3 innings — all career-highs for the junior right-hander.
Grein held Ole Miss 2 for 13 with runners in scoring position and though she surrendered the game-tying two-run single in the seventh, the All-American buckled down and finished the gutsiest performance of her career. She silenced the Rebels throughout extra innings long enough for the Ducks to finally break through once more in a 6-5 win in 10 innings decided on a walk-off walk by Kedre Luschar after Friday night turned to Saturday morning at Devon Park.
“I knew my teammates had my back regardless,” Grein said. “I knew before we got here we were going to pull it off. We didn’t know what it would look like, but the Ducks were going to leave with a win today.
“I told my teammates as long as there’s innings and we have outs to spare, I will stay here until 8:30 the next — or today, and however long it was going to take for us to win. But today wasn’t the day that Version 7 ends their season.”
Grein left with with Oregon leading 2-1 with two outs and a runner on third in the fifth, then Ole Miss tied it on a single by Persy Llamas off Staci Chambers. Grein later reentered with two on and one out in the sixth, one of multiple jams she got out of unscathed, and did not leave the circle again.
Grein’s performance actually improved after reentering, despite the high leverage situations she was in.
She notched four of her seven strikeouts after returning to the circle and threw 46 strikes on 64 pitches compared to 48 out of her first 80. She threw first pitch strikes to 14 of the final 21 Ole Miss batters she faced compared to 10 of the first 21.
“I think they did a good job pitch calling because they went back down and mixed in some different off speeds in some of those counts, whether they led with it or finished with it, just to keep us off balance,” Ole Miss coach Jame Trachsel said. “Good pitcher, had good command today, up and down and mixed speeds and could throw it on different counts. Could throw it for a strike or expand the zone. It was a tough puzzle to crack.”
It was the most pitches thrown by an Oregon pitcher since Jordan Dail’s 145 against Utah on May 3, 2019, when UO literally had no other pitchers on its roster.
While not extremely outrageous volume in college softball, Oregon coach Melyssa Lombardi avoids overworking her pitchers and looks to avoid topping 120 pitches in a game.
Made aware Grein was one shy of the high pitch count mark of her tenure, Lombardi smiled.
“Lyndsey is just a straight-up competitor on the mound,” Lombardi said. “There’s no way she’s coming out of that game. There’s no way. She’s going to finish it.
“At Oregon, we talk about it all starts in the weight room. And the reason why Lyndsey was able to finish that game is because it all starts in the weight room. What she’s done with (strength coach Kaelin Jackson) has given her the strength, the endurance she needs to start a game like that and come out and reenter it and finish it and get better as the game went on. She got better as the game went on.”
It was performances like Grein’s that Oregon has so sorely been missing from the circle since All-American Brooke Yanez, who missed the 2022 season due to injury and transferred to UCLA in 2023.
Getting out of one jam after another — two on, no outs; two on, one out; runner on second, one out; bases loaded, one out; first and second, one out; first and second, two outs — against top competition on the sport’s biggest stage is what will make Grein’s outing live in lore no matter how Oregon’s season ends.
“It was just a no-way mentality,” Grein said. “I think one of the things that motivates me is when I glance up and look at my teammates, and that gets me really motivated, just to do it for them. ”
Grein allowed five runs, four earned, on eight hits and three walks, but those figures will be lost to history compared to the ultimate result as Oregon (54-9) advances to play the loser of Texas and Oklahoma in an elimination game on Sunday (4 p.m., ESPN2).
“I put her up against any hitter in this country and she’s going to win, and I just know it,” Luschar said. “I trust her, I believe in her, and she’s so awesome to play behind.”
Oregon
Where Oregon Ducks rank in industry recruiting rankings for 2027 class
With the winter evaluation period of high school football recruiting now behind us, we’ve seen some of the top recruiting sites update their rankings over the past few weeks and start to reset their boards for the 2027 class. In February, On3 shifted players around after getting fresh looks at the class, and 247Sports did the same earlier this week.
So with Oregon’s handful of commits getting new ratings, where does the Ducks’ class rank nationally in this cycle?
If you look at sites individually, it looks different, with 247Sports having Oregon sitting at No. 13 in the nation. At Rivals, though, they take the industry ranking, which factors in their own rankings, plus an average from 247Sports and ESPN.
In the industry rankings, Oregon sits at No. 9 in the nation, with five commitments.
Going into the summer months, the Ducks are in a great spot, leading or among the top schools for a handful of the top prospects in the nation, like 5-star QB Will Mencl or 5-star WR Dakota Guerrant. We will see what movement Oregon can make in the coming months after official visits take place early in the summer.
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Oregon
New Data Shows Oregon E-Scooter Injuries on the Rise
Data released by the Oregon Health Authority this week suggests Oregonians are getting hurt on electric scooters more every year.
In recent years, according to OHA, an “e-scooter-specific code” was developed for health care tracking purposes.
From 2021 to 2024, annual injury reports under this code from Oregon hospitals and emergency departments jumped from 211 to 418.
And in just the first nine months of 2025, there had been 509 such reports.
“These injuries are not minor scrapes,” said Dagan Wright, an OHA epidemiologist, in a written statement. “They often involve head injuries, broken bones, and other serious trauma that requires emergency or inpatient care.”
The city of Portland signed contracts with three e-scooter rental companies in 2018, as the transportation craze spread across the country. But e-scooter injury diagnosis codes are relatively new in health care reporting, Wright said in the OHA statement.
“While the overall numbers remain smaller than for other transportation-related injuries, the rapid increase over a short period of time is a clear safety signal,” OHA added.
The agency highlighted the story of Portland e-scooter commuter Daniel Pflieger, who it says was riding a scooter home when he reportedly slid on ice. He bruised several ribs.
Sometimes outcomes are worse. OHA identified 17 deaths linked to electric or motorized scooters since 2018, and seven of those occurred in 2025.
OHA says that e-bikes raise many similar safety concerns as e-scooters. The first full year for which e-bike injuries were coded for reporting was 2023. State data shows 392 reported e-bike injuries that year, 683 in 2024, and 760 in the first nine months of 2025.
“Injuries involving e-bikes and e-scooters share common risk factors—speed, lack of helmet use, roadway design, and interactions with motor vehicles,” Wright said.
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Oregon
Oregon women’s basketball playing for March Madness seeding vs. Purdue
Hear Oregon women’s Graves, Etute and Fiso after loss to Washington
The Oregon Ducks women’s basketball team finishes the regular season with a March 1 home loss to Washington.
At times, the Oregon women’s basketball team has certainly made things much harder on themselves than it needs to be. The team has also produced some miraculous comeback victories, putting itself in position to make women’s March Madness for the second straight season.
March 1, in their final regular season game, the Ducks (20-11, 8-10 Big Ten) finished on the wrong end of yet another tight game to Washington, 70-69. It’s the second time this season Oregon has come back from a double-digit deficit, but ended up losing to the Huskies (20-9, 10-8).
Those aren’t the only times Oregon has come back from a double-digit deficit, like it did in wins vs. Nebraska and USC. The No. 11-seed Ducks are hoping they won’t need heroics in a Big Ten tournament first-round game against No. 14 Purdue this Wednesday.
Watch Oregon basketball on Peacock
“I think our biggest weakness this year has been our inconsistency,” coach Kelly Graves said, “something we’ve battled all year. The great thing is our kids know, regardless of the score, we’ve got a chance. We’ll make it a game at some point. As a coach, it drives you nuts. Hopefully we can figure it out and play more consistent basketball.”
Oregon’s volatility has seen it earn three double-digit comeback wins this year, but also blow several games in the final moments.
Against Wisconsin, the Ducks held a 6-point lead with less than a minute remaining, but lost in overtime. Against Illinois, Oregon held a 21-point lead at halftime, blew it in the third quarter, trailed by eight with minutes to play and somehow eked out a win.
That makes UO somewhat of a wild card heading into the conference tournament this week at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
“It’s definitely (been) a rollercoaster,” guard Katie Fiso said. “A lot of highs and a lot of lows. But one thing that I try to see through all games is our grittiness and our toughness. One thing that stays consistent throughout the season is our toughness and our grittiness. The game isn’t over until the last bell rings.”
The Ducks will be taking on a Boilermakers (13-16, 5-13) team that has struggled against most of the top competition in the league, but played Oregon tight in a Feb. 25 Ducks win.
Graves said when the Ducks went throughout the postgame handshake line after, the Boilermakers felt like their season would end after the regular season. Thanks to some upsets, Purdue is in the Big Ten Tournament as the No. 14 seed.
“We’re playing a team that probably feels like it’s playing with house money,” Graves said. “We’ve got to pick ourselves back up and get it done.”
What channel is Oregon vs. Purdue on today in Big Ten tournament?
Oregon will tip off vs. Purdue on Peacock, with no TV option to watch the game.
Oregon vs. Purdue start time in Big Ten tournament
- Date: Wednesday, March 4
- Time: Around 5:30 p.m. PT
Oregon and Purdue will play around 5:30 p.m. PT at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis. The first game of the day begins at 12:30 p.m. PT, with the next game 25 minutes after the first game ends, and so on. The Ducks play in the third game of the day, so no official tip time is listed.
Oregon women’s basketball schedule 2025-26
Below are the past five games of Oregon’s 2025-26 basketball season. For the full schedule, click here.
| Feb. 15 | Washington 51, Oregon 43 |
| Feb. 19 | Oregon 80, Nebraska 76 |
| Feb. 22 | Indiana 72, Oregon 65 |
| Feb. 25 | Oregon 71, Purdue 65 |
| March 1 | Washington 70, Oregon 69 |
| March 4 | Oregon vs. Purdue (Big Ten tournament) |
Purdue women’s basketball schedule 2025-26
Below are the past five games of Purdue’s 2025-26 basketball season. For the full schedule, click here.
Feb. 14
Purdue 72, Rutgers 57
Feb. 19
Iowa 83, Purdue 74
Feb. 22
Maryland 99, Purdue 66
Feb. 25
Oregon 71, Purdue 65
March 1
Purdue 67, Northwestern 62
March 4
Oregon vs. Purdue (Big Ten tournament)
Alec Dietz covers University of Oregon football and women’s basketball for The Register-Guard. You may reach him at adietz@registerguard.com.
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