Cal Poly-bound Scio senior Myleigh Cooper has hit 23 home runs this season and 72 in her career. (Photo by Jeremy MdDonald)

Scio senior slugger Myleigh Cooper is having a softball season of historic proportions.

Cooper has hit 23 home runs this season, breaking the state record of 21, set by Marist Catholic's Lauren Burke in 2016. She hit No. 22 on Monday in an 8-0 win over Cascade and No. 23 on Wednesday in a 16-0 win over Clatskanie.

Her last home run hiked her career total to 72, tying her for the most in state history with Marist Catholic's Ariel Carlson (2016-19).

“It's been an amazing year for her, for sure,” Scio coach Jim Mask said of Cooper, the two-time 3A player of the year. “Her hitting has been a lot better this year. She's getting walked a ton. It just shocks me how focused she can be when she actually gets an at-bat. She's just been really dialed in.”

Cooper is batting .813 with 62 RBIs. She is on pace to break the single-season state record for batting average (.794, Makenna Partain, Banks, 2015). And she is within range of the single-season record for RBIs (74, Abby Doerr, Marist Catholic, 2019).

The Cal Poly-bound Cooper bats leadoff for the Loggers (24-1), who are No. 1 in the OSAAtoday 3A coaches poll.

“I wish I could bat her third. She should be,” Mask said. “But they walk her so much, we'll take the free baserunner to start the game.”

Cooper has 223 career RBIs, moving up to No. 2 in state history behind Carlson (252).

Cooper also dominates in the circle. She has struck out 164 in 97 1/3 innings this season, giving her 942 career strikeouts, eight away from cracking the state's all-time top 10. With 80 career wins, she ranks No. 5 all-time.

She tossed a four-hitter with eight strikeouts in the win over Cascade (24-2), which is No. 4 in 4A.She threw a four-inning two-hitter with nine strikeouts to beat Clatskanie (21-4), No. 2 in 2A/1A. In the latter, she ripped a long home run to left-center field off Clatskanie junior ace Joey Sizemore.

The Loggers, who lost in the semifinals in 2022 and in the final the last two seasons, have won seven in a row since a 3-1 loss to No. 2 Dayton, their only setback of the season. The streak also includes an 8-6 win over 4A No. 6 Scappoose.

“We've played some really good teams lately and played pretty well,” Mask said. “Those were good games for us. We saw some good pitching. We've really got our bats going.”

Sizzling Sizemore

Clatskanie's Sizemore also is putting up monster numbers this season.

One year after driving in 73 runs to come within one RBI of Doerr's single-season record, she has 67 RBIs. Her career total of 184 ranks fourth on the career list behind Carlson (252), Cooper (223) and Scappoose's Hannah Galey (217, 2015-18).

Sizemore is batting .616 with 12 home runs. She has hit three grand slams this season, matching her total from 2024.

In the circle, Sizemore has struck out 152 batters in 93 innings.

Junction City senior Lily Buendia, who tied Sizemore for the state lead with 73 RBIs last season, is having another big year despite being slowed by a partially torn labrum and pulled hamstring. She is batting .582 with nine home runs and 57 RBIs for the Tigers (14-11).

Bucks take GOL

No. 3 Pendleton (22-3, 10-2) swept a doubleheader at No. 2 La Grande (24-2, 10-2) on May 16 to give the Buckaroos their third consecutive title in the 4A Greater Oregon League.

Pendleton, which trailed previously undefeated La Grande by two games after dropping a home doubleheader to the Tigers on April 25, needed a sweep to pull even in the final league games.

The Buckaroos not only came through by winning 6-4 in eight innings and 12-5, but they captured the league title by run differential. They outscored La Grande by nine runs in the sweep, overcoming the Tigers' eight-run advantage in the April 25 doubleheader.

Senior Ella Sams had a big day for Pendleton. In the opener, she went 3 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs, including a solo shot for a 5-4 lead in the top of the eighth. In the second game, she went 4 for 5 with a double, home run and three RBIs.

The Buckaroos took a 2-0 lead in the first inning in the second game on a two-run homer by Sams, then erupted for eight runs in the second inning to lead 10-1. Senior Kendall Murphy hit a three-run double in the rally.

Murphy recorded wins in the circle for both games.