OMAHA, Neb. — Senior outfielder Emma Durr made the most of her first start in more than a month on Friday at Connie Claussen Field.
Durr hit a pair of home runs and drove in five runs to lead Omaha Softball to a 9-0 six-inning win over Kansas City.
Durr entered the day with four hits in 18 at-bats this season. She had only one at-bat since Feb. 20 prior to Friday.
"She did everything we asked. She had a plan and attacked when she got a pitch," coach Mike Heard said. "We've been rotating girls in and out of that (designated player) spot, waiting for someone to take it. She showed something today, and I'm really happy for her."
Durr, who has dealt with injuries the past two seasons, said Friday was probably the first time she had homered at home since her freshman season in 2023.
"My BP rounds this week have been pretty good, so I went in extra confident," Durr said.
Omaha (22-7, 4-0 Summit League) broke a scoreless tie in the second inning when Durr, who was batting ninth in the Omaha order, launched a two-run homer to left-center.
Durr made it 5-0 in the fourth with a three-run shot into the left-field bullpen. Sammy Schmidt and Ava Rongisch had singled prior to Durr lining a 3-2 pitch over the fence.
Omaha tacked on two more runs in the fourth as Katherine Johnson lined a single through the middle to score Rylinn Groff and Bailey Sample.
Durr capped her day at the plate with a single to right-center. Omaha left the bases loaded in the fifth, but Johnson ended the game in the sixth.
After Sample led off with a single, Johnson hit her eighth homer of the season to left-center.
Omaha, which has hit 49 homers this season, has homered in 17 straight games. The Mavericks have homered in 26 of their 29 games this season.
Maddia Groff went the first five innings for her ninth win this season. She allowed two singles and struck out eight. Freshman Hailey Boltz made her pitching debut for the Mavericks as she worked the sixth inning.
Omaha and Kansas City (9-28, 0-4) continue their series at 2 p.m. CT Saturday.
