Professional soccer is coming to the Southern Willamette Valley.

On July 29, the United Soccer League announced it has awarded a franchise to USL Eugene via a press release.

USL Eugene anticipates playing home games at the newly built Civic Park in South Eugene. 

USL League One featured 14 clubs in its inaugural 2024 season and  USL Eugene will be one of seven clubs joining in 2026. A women’s team is expected to follow shortly. 

“Eugene having a USL League One professional soccer team is outstanding news,” Eugene Mayor Kaarin Knudson said. “This means world-class talent in every match, and it completely aligns with Eugene’s international reputation in athletics. It’s huge for fans and youth soccer development, and great for our economy. This is an exciting investment in Eugene’s future, and I’m thrilled for our players and fans.”

Club branding is expected to launch later this summer and matches will air on ESPN+.

“As we continue our expansion in the Western U.S., Eugene is an excellent addition to our USL ecosystem,” USL League One President Lee O’ Neill said. “With a new stadium that holds strong community significance and an accomplished ownership group leading the way, USL Eugene is set up for success in our growing League One.”

“Bringing a USL League One franchise to the southern Willamette Valley is a game‑changer for our region,” said Springfield Mayor Sean VanGordon. “Professional soccer here speaks volumes, not just about sport, but about community spirit, economic opportunity, and pathways for our young athletes. “We’re excited to welcome top‑level talent to our city and look forward to the energy and pride this team will bring to downtown Eugene and the entire region.”

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Oregon sports has had a truly remarkable year with Athletic Director Rob Mullens engineering a coaching staff that, combined, takes home five conference titles and five NCAA championships throughout the Ducks’ athletic calendar. 

That said, The Daily Emerald has created a list ranking how the Ducks’ top five moments from the athletic year stack up against each other. 

1. The women’s track and field team wins the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championship.

Bringing home some serious hardware, the women’s track and field team was truly exceptional in 2025, bringing home the NCAA indoor championship. Oregon dominated the field, besting second-place Georgia by nearly 16 points in the competition. 

2. Oregon football wins the Big Ten Championship

Championing the best conference in college football notches Oregon football the second mark on this list. Although the ending of the season — a blowout loss to Ohio State in the Rose Bowl — will leave a sour taste in fans’ mouths, it’s hard to view 2025 as anything less than a success for Oregon football. The Ducks were a remarkable 13-0 in the regular season and clinched the Big Ten Championship on a final drive interception from Nikko Reed. 

3. Oregon softball makes Women’s College World Series

Oregon’s “version 7” did not disappoint, with Oregon softball making its way to Omaha and facing off in the Women’s College World Series. Although the Ducks were unable to bring home a championship, Oregon softball continued to establish itself as a national power in 2025, holding a top 10 spot in the standings for much of the season. Holding its own with some of the best programs in the country. 

4. Oregon softball and baseball win Big Ten regular season titles

Although the regular season is not the whole story, it’s still no small feat to be the best team in the conference throughout a weeks-long slog of a season. That’s exactly what both Oregon diamond sports teams were able to accomplish. Oregon softball wrapped up the Big Ten title in the second-to-last game of the season at home against Michigan State. On the other hand, Oregon baseball had a flair for the dramatic, sweeping Iowa in a three-game series to clinch the title.

5. Oregon women’s golf wins Big Ten Women’s Golf Championship

Head coach Derek Radley’s Ducks continue to establish themselves as one of the best programs in the country. Oregon was able to bring home a Big Ten Championship on the back of a career day from Kiara Romero. Romero fired a 4-under 68 on May 18 to help the Ducks win the championship. 

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As fans from both sides littered the near-sellout crowd, Lyndsey Grein stood in the middle of the circle taking in the game and the moment around her.

In front of her, 12,400 fans filled the famous Devon Park, the most an Oregon (56-11, 19-3 Big Ten) team has ever played in front of her. Behind her, an Ole Miss team sat, determined to accomplish the same thing as the Ducks — fight off elimination.

This had to have been the kind of night Grein envisioned when she picked Oregon last offseason: a crowd filled to the brim, incredibly high stakes, and a national spotlight on her and her team.

Friday, it was all on Grein — the attention, the opportunity, the moment, the team around her. And in front of a crowd that rewarded every moment with passionate response, the No.16-ranked  Ducks stayed alive in the Women’s College World Series, sparking an extra-inning rally to beat Ole Miss (42-21, 11-13 SEC)  6-5 on the back of 9.1 four-run innings from Grein. 

To cap off a game it was in control of before relenting a three-run seventh to force extras, Oregon relied on a pair of infield singles and a fielder’s choice before Kedre Luschar walked home the winning run. 

The loss sends the Rebels home. Oregon will take on the loser of the Texas and Oklahoma game on Sunday at 4 p.m. in another elimination game. 

To lead for as long as it did, Oregon relied on back-to-back hits from Kai and Kedre Luschar. Then, knocks from Rylee McCoy and Kaylynn Jones helped extend its fifth-inning lead to three. 

But the advantage wouldn’t last. Grein surrendered three runs to the Rebels in the seventh inning. The biggest blow in the inning came off the bat of sophomore Jamie Mackay, who singled home a pair with two outs. 

But Grein eventually reseized the moment in the Ducks’ favor, holding Ole Miss scoreless over the final three innings of the game to set up Luschar and the Ducks’ late heroics. 

Everyone seemingly played a part in the win, from Paige Sinicki’s baserunning and defense to Dez Patmon’s — who opened the scoring for the Ducks with a two-run single — timely hitting. Kaylynn Jones was an underappreciated star on the night, tacking on a third run in the fifth and working the count each time she came to the plate. 

The Ducks rose to every occasion, battling once again in an elimination game and executing when called upon to seize the win. Their reward? A showdown with one of the two teams that made the finals last season. 

But to get that point, Oregon had to rely on a clutch at-bat from its best hitter this season. Luschar walked on a 3-1 count with the bases loaded in the tenth, tossing her bat to the dugout and clapping her hands in celebration. It was one euphoric moment for the Ducks on a night full of them, the win ensuring they would have at least one more game to keep creating them.

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Hundreds of the best high school athletes in the state will flock to Hayward Field this weekend to showcase their talents on one of the world’s most famous tracks. Although the focus will undoubtedly be on the stars performing, The Emerald has comprised a very serious list of how we think most high school mascots would fare in each event. 

The track merchants

Any jaguar, panther, lion or wildcat mascot will absolutely dominate this field. The track events were literally made for these guys to shine, and they certainly will. The jaguars (50–60 mph) and panthers (35–40 mph) are my best bet to win in any event they participate in. But this is sports and you certainly have to quantify for back-to-backs and flu games. My picks for a surprise finalist in any of these events would be the North Medford Black Tornado and the Oregon City Pioneers (who are certainly used to long-distance tracks). 

The high flyers

High jump is perhaps the most one-sided type of event throughout this list, with eagles, hawks and any type of bird having a clear advantage over the rest of the field. Although eagles generally fly higher than hawks, I’d imagine the two tyrants of the sky would do their best to get as high as possible — literally soaring over the competition. It’s a shame too, because the Pleasant Hill Billies (billy goat) are known for their jumping and climbing abilities, but ultimately would not be able to compete with the birds. 

Shot put

The strongest athletes at Hayward would have a significant advantage here, with the Grants Pass Cavemen and Tillamook Cheesemakers my top human mascot picks. On the animal side, any type of grizzly or viking mascot would be a good selection to rise to the top of the competition.  

Javelin

The Sherwood Bowmen as well as the South Eugene Axe are my top two selections. Although the mechanics of javelin are a bit different from both of these mascot’s fortes, I’m betting on the potential of both being able to adjust their skill sets better than the rest of the field. 

The wild cards

Although not a safe enough selection to beat any of the heavily favored mascots, the Sprague Olympians and Silverton Foxes feel like they could be a significant player in any event they are in. On the Olympian’s side, the appeal is obvious, with Sprague able to be at least above average in any possible event. On the other hand, the Foxes might be quick and clever enough to beat any of the more strength-heavy finalists. 

My podium (who would do the best if all mascots participated in every event):

1. North Medford Black Tornado — speed, strength and toughness, North Medford has it all and has a perfect blend of traits that enables it to be better than any other competitor. 
2. Sprague Olympians— a good blend of strength, toughness and strategy. My money is on the Olympians being able to excel at most events and land a top spot on the podium. 
3. Mazama Vikings — similar to Sprague, I’d bet on Mazama being able to excel at most events and finish near the top.

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The most famous cliché in diamond sports is that it’s a game of failure. But no one expected a let down like this.

Top-seeded Oregon softball (47-7, 19-4) went out in the Big Ten Tournament in embarrassing fashion, mustering just five hits and going just 1-15 with runners on base in a 5-0 loss to eighth-seeded Michigan (36-19, 13-11). 

“We’re not done; there’s so much more to do,” Oregon head coach Melyssa Lombardi said to GoDucks. “But in order for that to happen, we’ve got to be better than what we showed today. Michigan played really, really well on all sides of the ball. We didn’t play well enough. And that’s the difference.”

Oregon’s offense did nothing while its pitching wasn’t good enough on a day when the Ducks were never a threat. 

Michigan tallied 11 hits while scoring once in the second and third innings before a three-spot in the fifth put the Ducks away. 

The Ducks couldn’t score and their pitching couldn’t match the Wolverines — the result was a thud of a performance that could leave Oregon’s regional-hosting aspirations in jeopardy. On the other hand, Michigan cashed in most of the chances it got while Oregon’s offense crumbled in the clutch. 

The loss is only made worse by the precedent — the Ducks swept Michigan on home turf less than a month prior. 

Kai Luschar (2-4) was the only Duck with multiple hits. Oregon left runners on base in five separate innings. Michigan, on the other hand, was 7-for-12 with runners in scoring position.

Oregon’s best chance came in the third and fifth innings when the Ducks got two on with one out, but both times runners were stranded. 

It’s the second time the Ducks have been held scoreless this season. 

Pitchers Elise Sokolsky, Lyndsey Grein and Staci Chambers threw for the Ducks, with the trio combining to go the distance. But Oregon couldn’t muster any momentum offensively, and with that, came crumbling down on the biggest stage. 

Maddie Erickson and Jenissa Conway both tallied RBI knocks for the Wolverines to chase Sokolsky after just two innings of work. 

Grein walked one and allowed three singles over 2.1 disappointing innings in relief. 

Lauren Derkowski (three hits, one walk over three innings) and Erin Hoehn (two hits,  four innings) were brilliant for the Wolverines, who advance to face the winner of No. 4 seed Ohio State and No. 12 seed Purdue in the semifinals.

Oregon went down in order in the seventh, all while Michigan and its crowd deliriously celebrated the upset. 

The Ducks crumbled in pitiful and — given their season-long prowess — shocking fashion.

Oregon entered the week 16th in the RPI rankings. The Ducks will learn their future in the NCAA Tournament selection show on Sunday. 

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The most famous cliché in diamond sports is that it’s a game of failure. But no one expected a let down like this.

Top-seeded Oregon softball (47-7, 19-4) went out in the Big Ten Tournament in embarrassing fashion, mustering just five hits and going just 1-15 with runners on base in a 5-0 loss to eighth-seeded Michigan (36-19, 13-11). 

“We’re not done; there’s so much more to do,” Oregon head coach Melyssa Lombardi said to GoDucks. “But in order for that to happen, we’ve got to be better than what we showed today. Michigan played really, really well on all sides of the ball. We didn’t play well enough. And that’s the difference.”

Oregon’s offense did nothing while its pitching wasn’t good enough on a day when the Ducks were never a threat. 

Michigan tallied 11 hits while scoring once in the second and third innings before a three-spot in the fifth put the Ducks away. 

The Ducks couldn’t score and their pitching couldn’t match the Wolverines — the result was a thud of a performance that could leave Oregon’s regional-hosting aspirations in jeopardy. On the other hand, Michigan cashed in most of the chances it got while Oregon’s offense crumbled in the clutch. 

The loss is only made worse by the precedent — the Ducks swept Michigan on home turf less than a month prior. 

Kai Luschar (2-4) was the only Duck with multiple hits. Oregon left runners on base in five separate innings. Michigan, on the other hand, was 7-for-12 with runners in scoring position.

Oregon’s best chance came in the third and fifth innings when the Ducks got two on with one out, but both times runners were stranded. 

It’s the second time the Ducks have been held scoreless this season. 

Pitchers Elise Sokolsky, Lyndsey Grein and Staci Chambers threw for the Ducks, with the trio combining to go the distance. But Oregon couldn’t muster any momentum offensively, and with that, came crumbling down on the biggest stage. 

Maddie Erickson and Jenissa Conway both tallied RBI knocks for the Wolverines to chase Sokolsky after just two innings of work. 

Grein walked one and allowed three singles over 2.1 disappointing innings in relief. 

Lauren Derkowski (three hits, one walk over three innings) and Erin Hoehn (two hits,  four innings) were brilliant for the Wolverines, who advance to face the winner of No. 4 seed Ohio State and No. 12 seed Purdue in the semifinals.

Oregon went down in order in the seventh, all while Michigan and its crowd deliriously celebrated the upset. 

The Ducks crumbled in pitiful and — given their season-long prowess — shocking fashion.

Oregon entered the week 16th in the RPI rankings. The Ducks will learn their future in the NCAA Tournament selection show on Sunday. 

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The most famous cliché in diamond sports is that it’s a game of failure. But no one expected a let down like this.

Top-seeded Oregon softball (47-7, 19-4) went out in the Big Ten Tournament in embarrassing fashion, mustering just five hits and going just 1-15 with runners on base in a 5-0 loss to eighth-seeded Michigan (36-19, 13-11). 

“We’re not done; there’s so much more to do,” Oregon head coach Melyssa Lombardi said to GoDucks. “But in order for that to happen, we’ve got to be better than what we showed today. Michigan played really, really well on all sides of the ball. We didn’t play well enough. And that’s the difference.”

Oregon’s offense did nothing while its pitching wasn’t good enough on a day when the Ducks were never a threat. 

Michigan tallied 11 hits while scoring once in the second and third innings before a three-spot in the fifth put the Ducks away. 

The Ducks couldn’t score and their pitching couldn’t match the Wolverines — the result was a thud of a performance that could leave Oregon’s regional-hosting aspirations in jeopardy. On the other hand, Michigan cashed in most of the chances it got while Oregon’s offense crumbled in the clutch. 

The loss is only made worse by the precedent — the Ducks swept Michigan on home turf less than a month prior. 

Kai Luschar (2-4) was the only Duck with multiple hits. Oregon left runners on base in five separate innings. Michigan, on the other hand, was 7-for-12 with runners in scoring position.

Oregon’s best chance came in the third and fifth innings when the Ducks got two on with one out, but both times runners were stranded. 

It’s the second time the Ducks have been held scoreless this season. 

Pitchers Elise Sokolsky, Lyndsey Grein and Staci Chambers threw for the Ducks, with the trio combining to go the distance. But Oregon couldn’t muster any momentum offensively, and with that, came crumbling down on the biggest stage. 

Maddie Erickson and Jenissa Conway both tallied RBI knocks for the Wolverines to chase Sokolsky after just two innings of work. 

Grein walked one and allowed three singles over 2.1 disappointing innings in relief. 

Lauren Derkowski (three hits, one walk over three innings) and Erin Hoehn (two hits,  four innings) were brilliant for the Wolverines, who advance to face the winner of No. 4 seed Ohio State and No. 12 seed Purdue in the semifinals.

Oregon went down in order in the seventh, all while Michigan and its crowd deliriously celebrated the upset. 

The Ducks crumbled in pitiful and — given their season-long prowess — shocking fashion.

Oregon entered the week 16th in the RPI rankings. The Ducks will learn their future in the NCAA Tournament selection show on Sunday. 

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The Ducks (45-6, 17-3 Big Ten) had confidence rolling into Friday’s 6-4 loss to Michigan State as  the winners of five straight games and surging to the No. 3 ranking nationally – which matched the best in the Melyssa Lomabrdi era. 

They had the atmosphere, a packed Jane Sanders Stadium revved up after former Duck Hanna Delgado’s first pitch to open the last home series of the regular season.

Most of all, they had a plan: give the ball to Lyndsey Grein, back her up with a rested bullpen and try to strike for a quick win in game one of the series.

The only problem: they didn’t have enough of a response to the Michigan State Spartans’ (16-27, 6-14 Big Ten) six-run outburst in the second inning.

Grein gave up four earned runs while recording just four outs in a disastrous start complete with three errors and four walks. 

“We got behind a little bit and shot ourselves in the foot,” Lombardi said. “They took advantage of that.” 

“We squandered opportunities,” Lombardi said. “We got down, which I get that, but there’s a lot of game left and we had opportunities that we didn’t take advantage of.”

Very little went Oregon’s way on Friday. 

12 different Spartans came to the plate in the second. Kaelin Clark’s leadoff homer helped spark the inning before Sydney Doloszycki’s three-run double broke the game open. 

Making matters worse, Oregon’s defense did its pitching no favors — Paige Sinicki bobbled a grounder and Rylee McCoy dropped a routine throw. 

“That’s not us,” Lombardi said. “That’s not us at all.” 

Elise Sokolsky entered in relief and surrendered two more runs, leaving the Jane mostly silent, save Michigan State’s fan section. 

The Ducks gave fans in attendance something to cheer about in the third when Kedre Luschar lined a two-RBI single. Then, Oregon tallied two more in the fifth with the help of another Luschar single and a triple from Sinicki.

“I do like the fight,” Lombardi said. “We just dug ourselves a hole.” 

Luschar was 2-4 with three RBI’s and Sokolsky went the rest of the way, finishing with a line of 5.2 innings pitched and just one earned run. 

“I thought she did great. After that she was really efficient, she got quick outs, a lot of shutdown innings,” Lombardi said of Sokolsky. “She did everything we could ask her to do.” 

But it wasn’t enough. 

Michigan State played well enough to win, and Oregon, time and time again, shot itself in the foot. 

The Ducks battled back and had a chance to tie or take the lead down to two with the bases loaded and no one out in the sixth, but three straight outs ended the rally. 

“We didn’t do enough to win a game,” Lombardi said. “Tomorrow we will bounce back.”  

Game two of the series is set for 2 p.m. Saturday. With a win, Oregon can clinch a share of the Big Ten regular season title. 

“These guys know… we know what the road looks like, we know what the standings look like,” Lombardi said. “We need to play better, a full seven innings better than we did today.”

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Value each pitch. Make the right decision. Get the big hit. Locate your pitches.

Over and over and over.

Every blunder can spark a big inning. Every ugly swing can re-energize your opponent. Every wrong step is one closer to a pivotal blow to your record and resume.

These are the demands that must be met to win in college softball. Demands that No. 5 Oregon softball (45-5, 17-2 Big Ten ) has had little trouble conquering thus far this season, and had no issues doing yet again on Monday in the Ducks’ 10-1 run-rule win over Notre Dame (23 – 30). 

Monday’s game was just as lopsided as the final score would suggest. 

Keyed by Emma Cox’s three-run homer in the first, the Ducks scored five runs before Elise Sokosly even threw a pitch. 

After a second-inning homer from Rachel Allen, Notre Dame didn’t score again and mustered just one more hit. Seven Ducks reached base in a four-run fourth inning, which only helped the final score grow more uneven. 

Kai and Kedre Luschar combined to go 4-7 with four runs scored. Kaylynn Jones extended her hitting streak to five games and raised her batting average to .318. 

Sokolsky and Taylour Spencer combined to dominate the Notre Dame offense, tossing five innings while facing just three batters over the minimum. 

Spencer epitomized the win, striking out five over four innings of work and lowering her ERA to 3.15. She allowed the one homer, but rebounded well to throw 41 of 63 pitches for strikes. 

The Ducks backed their pitchers with a number of superb defensive plays, the biggest coming in the bottom of the third when Kedre Luschar perfectly timed her jump to rob a homer.

Four different Ducks tallied two-or-more hits, with Cox’s homer the lone long ball of the day. 

A Cox RBI single in the fourth helped push the run-rule into effect and helped mercifully end the wildly one-sided contest. 

Oregon played four games over four days in the state of Indiana, outscoring teams 38-13 in the process. 

The Ducks have now won 45 games, the most in the nation. To do so they followed a reliable blueprint — blitzing an opponent’s starting pitcher, throwing up zero’s and relying on strong defense to guide them to stress-free wins. 

The Ducks dominated their last nonconference matchup of the regular season. They’ll now set their sights on clinching the Big Ten regular season title next weekend against Michigan State at Jane Sanders Stadium.

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Kaylynn Jones had not hit a home run in her previous 119 collegiate at-bats. 

Instead, she waited until an appearance against Oregon’s fiercest opponent to get her first.  

Jones hit her first homer in the bottom of the fourth in Oregon’s 9-0 run-rule win over UCLA. After Ayanna Shaw and Katie Flannery both reached base, Jones slapped a ball to right-center that carried out for a three-run homer and extended the lead to seven.

With an easy swing on a middle-middle fastball in the fourth inning, Jones broke open Oregon’s biggest game of the season to date. 

“It was great,” Jones said. “I was just trying to focus on a sac fly, trying to score our runners and just to have that feeling of hitting it out felt great.”

Jones is hitting .300 on the season — one of nine Ducks hitting at or above that number — while adding stout defense. 

Home runs are not why the Ducks long coveted Jones  in high school at Denton Guyer High School. Home runs were not one of the primary factors they thought they were acquiring when the freshman made her Ducks debut on opening day. 

Her positional versatility, contact-hitting abilities and Gold Glove-caliber defense across the diamond are what the program valued most when she committed. Plays like on Sunday when Jones fielded a ground ball from her second base position, tagged the runner that was at first and threw out the batter were what head coach Melyssa Lombardi expected — now the untapped power is just a bonus. 

“Kaylynn is a gritty, fearless competitor. She knows how to handle pressure and perform in the biggest moment,” Lombardi said of Jones in a press release when she committed to Oregon. “Her softball IQ is off the charts. She has the ability to hit the ball for power and drive in runs. With her speed, she has the ability to turn singles into doubles. Her athleticism gives her the ability to play up the middle and in the outfield and she will be a fan favorite at The Jane.”

“We knew she had that power … we were waiting for it,” outfielder Kedre Luschar said of Jones after the game. 

Jones’ breakout campaign has been one of the many storylines of Oregon’s remarkable 2025. Now, with Oregon’s postseason campaign two weeks away, she’s finding her power at just the right time. 

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