OSU looks to extend recent string of success

By Steve Gress
Gazette-Times sports editor

Over the past seven seasons, the Oregon State softball team has owned the Civil War series with Oregon.

Since the start of the 2000 campaign, the Beavers have posted a 17-4 record against the Ducks.

They have swept the three-game season series five times, including the last two years, and have won seven straight in the series.

The teams meet for the first time this season at 3 p.m. today at Oregon’s Howe Field. They play again at 1 p.m. Saturday, also at Oregon. They wrap up the three-game series at the OSU Softball Complex on April 25.

Both teams are off to 2-1 starts in Pacific-10 Conference play, making the next two games crucial.

“All of the Pac-10 games are huge and you have to come out ready to play, but with Oregon it’s a little more on the game with the in-state rivalry,” OSU senior pitcher Brianne McGowan said. “It’s a very intense game.”

McGowan has had success against the Ducks, posting a 5-0 record with 39 strikeouts in 34 innings in the circle.

While the Beavers have had the advantage recently, they haven’t dominated. Five of the last six games have been decided by one run.

“The last few years we’ve been getting the breaks, so we have to go out and play well because they are playing well now, too,” McGowan said.

The Ducks are hot, despite dropping their last game at home Sunday to Stanford. It was Oregon’s first home loss (12-1) and just the fourth of the season (36-4).

The Beavers have also been playing well, winning 13 of their last 15 after a 15-9 start.

“I think we’re in a really good spot right now,” McGowan said. “We have grown a lot because we have seven freshmen and that’s a lot of growing to do. I think we’re in a really good place right now beginning Pac-10 season.”

One of those freshmen, Dani Chisholm, is excited about playing in her first Civil War game.

“Being from the state of Oregon — Oregon and Oregon State, you have to pick one side,” she said. “You can’t be a fan of both, it just doesn’t work.

“Since I’m at Oregon State, they are going down in any sport.”

Still, Chisholm said the focus will be there regardless of who the Beavers are playing.

“We try not to look at our competition and just worry about ourselves and prepare ourselves for any game,” she said. “It shouldn’t matter who we play to get up for a game. I think we are just going to prepare ourselves and be ready for anything.”