Cardinal Bounces Back

STANFORD, Calif. – The Cardinal softball season is not over yet. A two-hit shutout from sophomore pitcher NiJaree Canady helped lead the way as Stanford topped No. 11 LSU 3-0 to force a winner-take-all game three of the Stanford Super Regional tomorrow. The 6:30 p.m. PT game will send the winner to the Women's College World Series in Oklahoma City.
 
A day after allowing the most runs of her collegiate career, Canady opened the game with a strikeout of her first batter. The punchout was the first of nine on the evening for the Topeka, Kans. product.
 
The Cardinal, playing as the road team, went ahead in the third inning. Sophomore Taryn Kern crushed a two-out triple off the top of the right-field wall, before sophomore Kyra Chan brought her home with an RBI double to center.
 
Canady didn't allow a hit until the bottom of the fifth, when she surrendered a leadoff double. The sophomore responded with three-straight strikeouts to strand the runner and send the Card to the sixth with a 1-0 lead.
 
In seven innings, Canady finished with just two hits allowed and three walks issued.
 
The Card added two more insurance runs in the top of the seventh, including another RBI from Chan. The sophomore finished the day 3-for-4 with two RBI.
 
Stanford and LSU will be back at Smith Family Stadium for game three tomorrow, with the start time set for 6:30 p.m. PT. Tickets are on sale now at tickets.gostanford.com, and the game will be broadcast on ESPN2. A win sends the Cardinal to Oklahoma City for the second-straight season.