Portland’s Megan Grant picked up right where her college career left off: hitting a record number of home runs. On Saturday night in Hillsboro Ballpark, Grant left the yard twice to join Maya Brady in breaking the Athletes Unlimited Softball League (AUSL) single-season home run record with 10 on the season.
She also helped the Cascade (14-11) secure an essential victory over the Texas Volts (7-18), keeping the team’s playoff hopes alive.
Grant entered her rookie season as a pro after an NCAA record-breaking 42 home runs in a single season at UCLA and set the school’s all-time career home run record with 91.
Brady reached the AUSL’s 10-homerun mark just a few hours earlier in the Spark game versus the Blaze with a twofer dinger day of her own. Grant joined the club with a solo shot in the bottom of the third, then followed it up with a three-run blast in the fourth. Morgan Zerkle set the home run mark last year during the inaugural season with nine.
Grant reached base safely in each of her last 17 games, the longest streak this season. In addition to the two homers, she drew a walk. The Cascade offense finished the day with eight total hits. Korbe Otis also homered, and Seirra Sacco-Ferrie was 2-for-3 at the plate. Kenleigh Cahalan put the team on the board in the first inning with a triple down the right field line, scoring three runs; it was a lead they never relinquished.
Pitcher Sam Landry was awarded the win for her three innings of work that allowed five hits and only one earned run. Payton Gottshall closed out the last two frames, only giving up two hits and walking one batter.
The Cascade is in a neck-and-neck push for the postseason with Oklahoma City, which still has two games remaining in the regular season. Portland and OKC sit with 11 losses on the season, and just one more in the ‘L’ column from the Spark would berth the Cascade to College Station, Texas, for the playoffs.
The expanded playoff format features a play-in game (No. 2 vs. No. 3 seed) on July 23, followed by the best-of-three AUSL Championship that begins on July 25.