Ta'Tayna McElroy Tosses 3-Hitter Leading Oregon State to Victory over UC Santa Barbara

Brianne McGowan Becomes Oregon State's All-Time Saves Leader as the Beavers top UC Santa Barbara, 3-2.

File photo courtesy: OSU Athletics

SANTA BARBARA, Ca. - The No. 13 ranked Oregon State softball team recorded a 3-2 non-conference victory over UC Santa Barbara on Monday afternoon.

Beaver senior pitcher Ta’Tyana McElroy (14-8) celebrated a near perfect birthday as the 22-year-old hurler faced just three batters above the minimum and threw only 62 pitches on the afternoon.

Oregon State (36-18) took advantage of multiple UCSB (26-19) errors in the second inning to put a pair of runs on the scoreboard. Dani Chisholm was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to give the Beavers their first run and then fellow freshman Alana Ford crossed the plate on a passed ball to make the score 2-0.

McElroy was in complete control in the circle, keeping the Gaucho batters off-balance throughout the game. UCSB didn’t hit a ball out of the infield until the fifth inning. Ericka Hansen’s two-out single into right-center field broke-up McElroy’s bid for a perfect game in the bottom of the fifth, but the Los Angeles native recovered and struck out the next Gaucho batter to end the inning.

OSU extended the lead to 3-0 in the top of the seventh when Chisholm scored on DeAnn Young’s single to left field. The single extended Young’s current hitting streak to seven games.

UCSB rallied back to score a pair of runs in the bottom of the seventh. Back-to-back doubles opening frame sparked the Gaucho offense. Beaver pitcher Brianne McGowan entered the game in relief and retired three batters to earn her fifth save of the year. With the save, McGowan became Oregon State’s all-time saves leader, breaking Monica Hoffman’s (2001-04) record of 12.

Young finished the game with a 2-for-4 mark from the plate to lead all players.

Oregon State returns to Corvallis for its final home series of the regular season. The Beavers will host No. 7 Arizona State on Friday at 3:00 PM before facing No. 4 Arizona at 1:00 PM on Saturday and Sunday.

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