Stanford Softball Earns Second Straight ACC Series Sweep

Is it time to start considering the Stanford Cardinal to be major Women's College World Series contenders?

A week removed from sweeping Syracuse, the Cardinal hit the road to face Notre Dame in a three-game series, sweeping the Fighting Irish in what was a big weekend at the plate.

Game one on Friday saw the Cardinal make quick work of Notre Dame, winning 10-0 and forcing the mercy rule to go in effect. The first inning is what really did it for them, as the Cardinal scored eight runs to go up 8-0 early. With the bases loaded, Allie Clements drove in the team's first run of the game after she drew a walk, bringing in Taryn Kern from third.

Later on, Jade Berry drove in two more runs after she hit a single, making it 3-0 Stanford. Then, Kyra Chan brought in two more after she hit a single, bringing in Berry and Clements. Eventually, Chan made it over to third, setting up Caelan Koch's RBI double that made it 6-0 Stanford. After Emily Jones hit an RBI single and River Mahler hit a sac fly, it was 8-0 by the time the first inning ended.

In the second inning, Chan hit a solo homer to make it 9-0 before driving in the 10th run in the fourth inning via an RBI single.

But, the performance of Kylie Chung on the mound was also a major factor in the game one win, allowing only two hits and walking two with three strikeouts in all five innings as she got the win to improve her season record to 9-1.

Game two was more of a competitive game, but the Cardinal still pulled away with the 6-2 victory. Starting the game up 6-0, Mahler started things off in the first inning when she hit a single to center field to score Jones from the third.

Then, in the fourth inning, an error by Notre Dame's first baseman following a ground ball hit by Jones allowed two Stanford runs to come in--Mylia Perez and Economides. That same inning, Mahler came in clutch once again, delivering on a massive three-run home run to center field to open the game up and give the Cardinal their 6-0 lead.

Despite the Fighting Irish scoring two runs in the fifth via an RBI double and an RBI single, it was not enough to overcome the big bats of Stanford. On the mound, Alyssa Houston started the game, striking out seven while allowing only one hit and walking three through four innings of work to earn the win and improve to 6-1.

Chung pitched two innings and struck out two and allowing a hit, while Zoe Prystajko pitched an inning, allowing two hits and two runs while walking one and striking out one.

In the final game on Sunday, the Cardinal pulled out the 13-7 win despite starting the game down 2-0. Following a Notre Dame RBI double and single in the first inning, Stanford responded after Economides hit a two-run homer to tie things up at 2-2.

Notre Dame then responded with a homer of its own in the second, regaining the 3-2 lead.

However, the Cardinal responded with a five-run third inning that was headlined by a two-run homer by Clements followed by a three-run homer by Economides. In the fourth inning, Berry hit a three-run homer to make it 10-3 Cardinal and put them in a position to seal the win.

After another couple of innings of good pitching and defense from the Cardinal, the offense added another run, with Koch hitting a single to bring in two more runs. Notre Dame though, was not done, bringing in four runs in the sixth inning to make it 12-7 Cardinal.

To cap things off, Mahler hit a single in the seventh to bring in Kern from third base, giving the Cardinal the victory.

Houston got the win, allowing four runs on three hits and two walks while striking out three. Chung pitched 1.1 innings, allowing three runs on four hits and a walk while striking out two, while Prystajko went 1.1 innings, allowing only one hit.

With the win, the Cardinal improve to 23-3 while extending their winning streak to 11 straight. In sweeping their second consecutive ACC series, the Cardinal have continued to prove that they are a major contender and will have a target on their back for the rest of the season for whoever they play.

Up next is a road game against Kentucky on Tuesday. First pitch is set for 3:00 p.m. (PT).