No. 20 Stanford Softball Keeps Hot Start to Season Alive

Stanford softball just keeps rolling. After starting the 2025 season with a 4-0 weekend, the Cardinal came back out over President's Day weekend and continued to dominate to start the new campaign, winning all five of their matchups in the Cardinal Classic to improve to 9-0.

Starting the weekend off with a tilt against UC Davis, the Cardinal made things quick against the Aggies, winning 12-1 in five innings. In the game, the Cardinal put on a slugfest, with second baseman Taryn Kern starting things off in the second inning with a three-run home run.

After that, the floodgates really opened with River Mahler and Ava Gall each driving in second inning runs as well off singles to make it 5-0 Cardinal.

After the Aggies scored once in the third, Stanford tacked on two more in the bottom half of the inning, with Joie Economides hitting a homer and Emily Jones hitting a double to extend Stanford's lead to 8-1.

In the fourth inning, Stanford scored four more times, with Kyra Chan driving in a run on a single, Kern getting hit by a pitch which resulted in two runs coming in, and Jones doubling to score two more, with the score being 12-1 Stanford.

Zoe Prystajko pitched and got the win, going 2.1 innings while striking out two and allowing only one hit. Kylie Chung also pitched, going 2.2 innings while striking out two, walking six and allowing one run.

In game two, the Cardinal beat UC Riverside 8-0 in six innings, with Kern (2-for-3, BB, HR, two RBIs), Gall (1-for-3, BB, HR, two RBIs) and Sydney Boulaphinh (1-for-2, HR, two RBIs) all putting together big days at the plate.

On the mound, Alyssa Houston got the win, pitching three innings while allowing just one hit and striking out six. Prystajko also pitched three innings, allowing two hits while striking out three.

On Saturday morning, the Cardinal played their third game of the weekend against Riverside once again, this time winning 9-1 in five innings. Gall (2-for-3, double, two RBIs), Kern (1-for-3, two RBIs), Caelan Koch (1-for-2, HR, two RBIs) and Jones (2-for-3, HR, RBI) were the top performers at the plate for Stanford.

Kylie Chung pitched three innings and got the win, going three innings and striking out three while allowing one hit and an unearned run. Prystajko pitched as well, going two innings while allowing only two hits and striking out two.

In game four, the Cardinal faced Portland State, winning 16-5 in five innings. Kern (1-for-3, HR, RBI), Gall (2-for-2, HR, two RBIs), Jones (3-for-3, HR, two RBIs), Economides (1-for-1, HR, three RBIs), River Mahler (2-for-3, two RBIs) and Allie Clements (RBI) were the stars at the plate in the blowout win.

Prystajko got the win, pitching three innings while allowing six hits, four runs and a walk while striking out two. Chung pitched as well, going two innings while allowing three hits and a run while striking out three.

The Cardinal then capped off the weekend on Sunday, with a 13-5 win over the Aggies. Chung pitched two innings and got the win, allowing a hit and three walks while striking out a pair.

Houston pitched 2.2 innings, allowing two hits and five runs (four earned) while walking five and striking out four. Prystajko pitched 0.1 innings. At the plate, Mahler (2-for-3, two doubles, four RBIs), Jade Berry (double, HR, four RBIs), Economides (3-for-3, double, two RBIs) and Clements (2-for-3, RBI) had big days that propelled the Cardinal to victory.

Next up for the Cardinal is a trip to Tucson to take part in the Hillenbrand Invitational hosted by the University of Arizona. The Cardinal will begin the tournament with two games on Thursday, starting with a 2:30 (PT) first pitch against UC Davis followed by a 5 p.m. (PT) game against Arizona. Both games will be at Hillenbrand Memorial Stadium.