Nittany Lions enter 35th season as a member of the Big Ten Conference, battle Oregon in Eugene for the first time in school history

EUGENE, Ore. – Penn State softball kicks off its 35th season of competition in the Big Ten Conference this Friday through Sunday, March 13 through 15, as the Nittany Lions continue their spring break trip in the Pacific Northwest with a three-game series against the No. 18 Oregon Ducks. All three games from Jane Sanders Stadium will stream live to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via B1G+ and the B1G+ app on connected devices.

GAME INFORMATION

RV Penn State at #18 Oregon | Friday, March 13 | 9 p.m. (ET) | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets

RV Penn State at #18 Oregon | Saturday, March 14 | 7 p.m. (ET) | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets

RV Penn State at #18 Oregon | Sunday, March 15 | 3 p.m. (ET) | Watch | Live Stats | Tickets

FOLLOW THE ACTION

Penn State’s Big Ten Conference-opening series against the Oregon Ducks will stream live to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via B1G+ and the B1G+ app on connected devices via the link here. Tickets for all three games of the weekend series from Jane Sanders Stadium game are available through the University of Oregon’s ticketing vendor, Ticketmaster, at the link here. Live stats provided by the University of Oregon and StatBroadcast are available via Penn State’s StatBroadcast hub at the link here.

QUICK HITS

The latest NCAA Division I Softball Ratings Percentage Index (RPI) report through games played on March 11, saw the Nittany Lions climb to the No. 42 position nationally following the program’s win over the Oregon State Beavers on Wednesday. Penn State currently stands as the No. 7 team in the Big Ten Conference, trailing Nebraska (#3), UCLA (#6), Oregon (#15), Washington (#22), Michigan (#31) and Purdue (#39). Through the first 25 games of the 2026 regular season, Penn State has been anchored by the breakout rookie performance of freshman third baseman Allison Oneacre, who boasts PSU-bests in batting average (.392), home runs (10) and RBI (37). The Alpharetta, Georgia, native needs just one more home run to crack the program’s single-season leaderboard, as well as four more RBI to accomplish the same feat in that category. In the circle, PSU has utilized a balanced attack, with five pitchers combining to book the third-best ERA in the B1G and 19th-best mark nationally at 2.40.

BATTLING IN THE BEAVER STATE

Penn State continues its spring break in the Beaver State of Oregon this weekend following a strong all-around midweek outing against the Oregon State Beavers this Wednesday, March 11. The Blue & White recorded a 3-1 win over the host Beavers, securing the program’s first-ever win in its first game played in the state of Oregon from Kelly Field in Corvallis. The Nittany Lions called on extra-base hits from sophomore catcher Macy Chamberlin and freshman left fielder Breanna Hanik, in addition to RBI from Hanik, junior second baseman Michela Barbanente and freshman first baseman Gabby Gradishar to book the victory. Penn State called on a trio of pitchers to work through the midweek contest, with freshman southpaw Brevyn Kellepouris earning the win to improve to 4-1 this year.

DANCING WITH THE DUCKS

Under the direction of eighth-year head coach Melyssa Lombardi, the Oregon Ducks enter their Big Ten Conference-opening weekend series against PSU boasting an 18-7 overall record coupled with the No. 18 ranking in the nation according to the NFCA Division I Coaches Poll released on March 10. Oregon was additionally ranked No. 19 according to the USA Softball Coaches Poll, and No. 21 per D1Softball. The Ducks are off to a strong start on the 2026 season by practically every measure, with four nationally ranked wins to their credit to this point. Oregon toppled then-No. 21 Liberty by a 10-2 score at the NFCA Leadoff Classic, in addition to victories over No. 11 Texas A&M (2-1), No. 13 South Carolina (2-1) and No. 20 Duke (11-8 (8)). Offensively, Oregon is paced by a trio of hitters with batting averages in excess of .400, with Elon Butler leading the way with a .440 average coupled with a 1.405 OPS. Butler also leads the squad in home runs with six, in addition to RBI with 28. Ayanna Shaw ranks second on the team in terms of average with a .421 mark, and Taryn Ho rounds out the trio of Ducks hitting above .400 with a .405 tally. The pitching staff is one of the highlights of Oregon’s 2026 roster, with a quartet of pitchers throwing in excess of 27.1 innings through the early going. Staff ace Lyndsey Grein returns for another season in the Green & Gold, leading Oregon with a 1.98 ERA coupled with a 0.88 WHIP through a team-high 60.0 frames. Veteran returner Elise Sokolsky ranks second on the team with 40.2 innings pitched and a 3.44 ERA.

STORY OF THE SERIES: OREGON

Penn State and Oregon prepare to meet for just the seventh, eighth and ninth times in each program’s respective histories this weekend in Eugene, with the Ducks taking each of the prior six meetings. The two squads will battle in the state of Oregon for the first time ever and will meet on the campus of either team for just the second time in history. PSU hosted the only prior on-campus meeting during the 2011 NCAA University Park Regional, with nationally-seeded Oregon forced to visit the Blue & White due to ongoing construction at Jane Sanders Stadium in Eugene. Oregon got the better of the Blue & White in that meeting on May 22, 2011, winning by a 3-1 final score in Happy Valley. Of Penn State’s six prior meetings against Oregon, only three came during the regular season, with a pair of matchups taking place in Bryan-College Station, Texas, in 2004, in addition to a 2022 regular season fixture from Chapel Hill, North Carolina. The two squads will meet for the first time since the University of Oregon joined the Big Ten Conference ahead of the 2024-25 academic year. PSU and Oregon last faced off on March 4, 2022, on the opening day of the Carolina Classic hosted by UNC. Penn State managed an early 4-2 lead through three and a half innings played, but the Ducks managed to battle back for a 12-4 win in five frames.