STANFORD, Calif. – The No. 8 Cardinal took home the victory on day one of the NCAA Stanford Regional, topping Saint Mary's 8-6. Sophomore ace NiJaree Canady was perfect on the night, with no Gaels reaching base in her five non-consecutive innings of work.
Stanford jumped out to the early lead, thanks to senior Aly Kaneshiro's two-run home run in the bottom of the first. The bomb to left field was her 11th of the season, extending her team lead.
Five more runs came across for Stanford in the bottom of the second, thanks to three bases-loaded walks and a two-run single from freshman Ava Gall.
Canady, the recently-named Pac-12 Pitcher of the Year, exited the game after two perfect innings – striking out three.
The Gaels pushed a pair of runs across in the top of the third, and four in the fourth to cut the Stanford lead to 7-6.
Freshman Jade Berry was able to answer in the home half of the inning, driving in a run to make it 8-6.
In the top of the fifth, Canady returned to the circle. The Topeka, Kans. product was just as sharp in her final three innings as in the first two, striking out seven more Gaels. Of the 15 batters Canady faced, 10 went down on strikes.
The Cardinal moves to 55-45 all time in NCAA tournament play, and advances into the winners bracket of the regional. Next up for the Card is No. 18 Mississippi State tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. PT on ESPN2. A win against the Bulldogs puts Stanford into the regional final on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. PT. A loss means the Cardinal would play at 7:00 p.m. PT tomorrow against either Saint Mary's or Cal State Fullerton.