Over the weekend, Stanford softball went undefeated at the Stanford Invitational defeating Nevada 3-0 on Friday, Michigan 5-0 on Saturday, Boise State 4-0 on Saturday, Boise State 4-2 on Sunday, and Michigan 3-1 on Sunday. As a result, the Cardinal are now 14-2 overall and ranked #6 in the nation by D1Softball.com.
The game I was able to cover in person was the 3-0 victory over Nevada. Stanford junior Regan Krause was the winning pitcher, pitching a no-hitter. Were it not for an error, she would have had a perfect game. She was simply lights-out. Nevada just couldn’t generate any offense against her.
“It’s a good win,” Stanford head coach Jessica Allister said after the game. “One, I’m so proud of Regan Krause and after having a couple rough outings to begin with, just to come out today with the confidence that she had and just really pound the zone and command the game, be in control all day. Just an exceptional outing by Regan.
“And I thought our defense was great. Obviously, we’d like the one up the middle back, but outside of that, like took care of the ball, played good defense, River’s play on the tipped ball was wonderful. So, I thought pitching and defense were really really good. I think offensively, any time you get that many hits and have that many runners on and it’s not coming in to runs, obviously you’d like to be a little bit better with runners on there and be able to execute a little bit better, move runners, and have productive at bats.
“But it’s better to get hits and leave runners on than not get any hits and leave runners on. So we’ll continue to get better at that and work on that. Got some young kids in the lineup who are still learning some of that situational stuff, but overall great win.
“And then River Mahler just continues to be unreal at the plate. She had another great day offensively…She’s a big-time ball player. I mean, she’s a great ball player. We knew that when we recruited her. She has not only an exceptional skillset, but she is as competitive as any player that I’ve ever coached. She plays every game like it’s the biggest game of her life and she’s zoned in and just is a big-time ball player.”
In the bottom of the 1st inning, Stanford scored their first run of the game. Freshman infielder River Mahler singled through the right side with one out after which junior catcher Aly Kaneshiro tripled to right center to bring Mahler home. Despite being on third base with only one out, neither Caelan Koch nor Kaitlyn Lim were able to get a hit to bring her home. This kept it a 1-0 lead for Stanford at the end of the inning.
Stanford would not score again in the game until the bottom of the 6th inning. They nearly scored in the bottom of the 4th inning as Emily Jones was tagged out at home plate for the second out after Ella Nadeau put the ball in play and advanced to first base via fielder’s choice, but aside from that their offense was pretty quiet until the 6th inning.
In the bottom of the 6th, Lim reached on a fielder’s choice after which Jones singled to short stop to advance Lim to second base. Emily Shultz then flied out to left field after which Emily Young grounded out to short stop to advance Jones and Lim. With two outs and Jones and Lim on second and third base, freshman Kyra Chan came into pinch hit for Sydney Steele and hit a clutch single up the middle to bring home both Jones and Lim. Taylor Gindlesperger then grounded out to first base unassisted to end the inning. Thanks to Chan’s single, Stanford now had a 3-0 lead going into the 7th inning.
“I just thought the pitcher, I looked at the pitcher the whole game, I felt like I knew what shew was throwing and I felt that she was throwing a lot of outside,” Chan said of her hit. “So, I looked for an outside pitch and just hit the ball.”
“Yeah, so Kyra and what we talked about here as a group, she’s kinda been buried on the bench a little bit with the outfield because three of our hitters that are hitting in the top-five of our lineup and putting together good seasons so far are playing in front of her,” Allister said of Chan. “And it’s just a tough place to get some playing time right now, but she’s had some exceptional BP sessions lately. I mean, really all year. She’s gonna be a big-time ball player for us. So to see her wait her turn, continue to prepare, and then be ready in a big moment was great.”
In the top of the 7th, Krause put the Nevada batters away, completing her no-hitter. Stanford won 3-0. For Stanford, this win over Nevada set the tone for the rest of the of the invitational. It was their first home game of the season and they did a nice job of building on the victory to win the remaining games of the weekend.
“I think just showing our most competitive selves,” Krause said of the key to the success against the Wolfpack. “That’s what Coach Allister says every day and that’s basically what we can do and just nothing is written. So, just going at everybody and giving it your best.”
For Krause, to pitch such a great game really felt good for her. Pitching a no-hitter is never easy and to do it in the home opener is particularly special.
“I just, like, from the start of the game, I just wanted to go out there and just throw every pitch with conviction,” Krause said. “And just, that was my goal tonight and so, that’s just what I did…A good mix of everything, you know. Keep hitters off balance, can’t sit on anything.”
“Regan was awesome,” Chan said of Krause. “Every pitch I was screaming. Like, every time she struck out a batter it was awesome and I’m so happy for her.”
Krause followed that performance up with a really good outing against Michigan on Sunday, pitching 6.0 innings and allowing just five hits and one earned run. It wasn’t a no-hitter, but it was good enough to get the job done and at the end of the day, that’s all that matters.
“It’s awesome,” Krause said of winning their first home game of the season. “We’ve done really well on the road and it’s just so much fun to have all the people that you love in the stands and obviously play at your favorite place. So, it was awesome.”
As a whole, Stanford’s pitching staff has been really stellar all season: Krause, NiJaree Canady, and Alana Vawter have all done their jobs and been really supportive of one another. They’re fostering an environment that inspires each other to be the best they can be.
“We are each other’s biggest supporters on and off the field,” Krause said. “We learn so much just from each other and we just are, we want the best for each other and it’s not a hostile and competitive environment. Like, when one of us succeeds, all of us succeed. It’s so awesome.”
As for Chan, her pinch hit against Nevada was her only hit of the weekend, but if she was going to have one hit, that’s about as good of a hit as you can ask for. For her to come off the bench like she did and get such a huge hit just shows what kind of player she is. That takes a lot of mental fortitude and an ability to stay locked in and ready for the moment.
“I think always watching the pitcher and paying attention to every little detail of the game,” Chan said of the key to staying ready. “But also being confident in my abilities and being ready for the opportunity that I’m given.”
“That was so awesome,” Krause said of Chan’s hit. “When she stepped up to the plate, I just knew Kyra was going to hit because in practice and stuff, she’s just one of the hardest hitters to get out and she works so hard and I am so beyond happy for her that she got a hit.”
Up next for Stanford is a home game on Wednesday, March 1st against UC Davis. That will begin at 6:00 PM PT on Stanford Livestream.
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