The Portland Cascade’s Tori Vidales, third from left, celebrates with teammates after hitting a home run in the fifth inning during an Athletes Unlimited Softball League game against the Oklahoma City Spark at Hillsboro Ballpark on Thursday, June 18, 2026.
Jenny Kane for OPB / OPB
More than 3,000 fans joyfully welcomed professional softball to Oregon Thursday night as the Portland Cascade defeated the Oklahoma City Spark at Hillsboro Ballpark.
The Athletes Unlimited Softball League’s inaugural Oregon game treated the sold-out crowd to the league’s third-ever shutout.
Pitcher Sam Landry led the Cascade to the 3-0 victory as the crowd — filled with area youth softball teams — coordinated chants for the new team.
After the game, Landry told reporters her teammates will not take any minute of the short AUSL season for granted. Instead, they’re building a culture that celebrates growth and fosters inclusiveness.
“There aren’t any cliques on this team,” Landry said. “I feel like everybody just kind of mingles. So when you get out there and you’re playing, and you’re playing for somebody else. When you love the people around you and can genuinely trust the people around you, I think you just play more freely, and I think that’s what we’re doing right now.”
Jilli Perrotti, center left, and Maclyn Force, right, stand during the national anthem before an Athletes Unlimited Softball League game between the Portland Cascade and Oklahoma City Spark at Hillsboro Ballpark on Thursday, June 18, 2026.
Jenny Kane for OPB / OPB
The Cascade are starting play as Oregon’s support for women’s sports has hit a fever pitch. Portland’s NWSL team, the Thorns, draws some of the highest attendance in its league. The success of the Thorns helped its owners see the potential for a WNBA team, and the rekindled Portland Fire started play at Moda Center this summer — also in front of a sold-out crowd.
The historic support for female athletes helped convince leaders in the AUSL that one of its six teams should be located near the Rose City. While Athletes Unlimited softball has existed in some capacity for a handful of years, this season is the first time its teams are connected to cities.
The six teams, with rosters of 16 players, travel to play each other over the next five weeks. Players make an average salary of $35,000, with bonus opportunities to earn up to $80,000, according to the AUSL website. The championship game is scheduled for July 25 in College Station, Texas.
Related: Softball joins Oregon lineup of pro women’s sports with Cascade coming to Hillsboro
The Portland Cascade play home games at Hillsboro Ballpark, which seats more than 3,000 fans.
Tiffany Michalski was among the fans at Thursday night’s game. Her 8-year-old daughter has already played softball for four years and is currently part of Blast Fastpitch, which runs multiple youth teams in the area.
Michalski said a handful of teams from the organization were at the Cascade’s inaugural home game.
“It’s super exciting to see these girls play at this level,” Michalski said of the professional players, and then pointed to her daughter, “and for these guys to see what they can achieve if they keep going.”
Justin Littlejohn drove about 50 miles from Kalama, Washington, to bring his 10-year-old daughter — and big fan of Landry — to the game. Littlejohn said his daughter plays with the Devils Fastpitch club, and that having an idol like Landry gives the girls a “north star” to look toward.
“With or without professional women’s sports, my daughter is going to conquer and dominate,” Littlejohn said. “But with this opportunity, she has a channel to explore, to really go get it. And it’s one that she doesn’t have to blaze the trail completely on her own.”
Lindsay Dillard, right, jokes with her partner Pamela Marquez before an Athletes Unlimited Softball League game between the Portland Cascade and Oklahoma City Spark at Hillsboro Ballpark on Thursday, June 18, 2026.
Jenny Kane for OPB / OPB
Softball fan Lindsay Dillard and her partner traveled from Seattle for the game. It’s the third professional women’s team the pair have seen play in the Portland area. Last year they traveled for a Thorns game, and on Wednesday night they watched the Fire defeat the Seattle Storm at Moda Center.
“The energy in Portland is just great,” Dillard said. “The Thorns game we watched last year — I forget which team you were playing, but it was somebody that was lower down in the rankings. But the stadium was just crazy on fire and yelling and screaming and cheering, and the energy here is just great, especially for women’s sports, so keep it up.”
Related: Inside the new $153 million stadium in Hillsboro
Cascade pitcher Landry said she felt the love of the Portland crowd Thursday night as she rendered her opponent scoreless.
“Most crowds, if you’re 3-0 in a count and then you randomly throw a strike, they’re going be like, ‘Oh, great job,’” Landry said after the game.
But not Thursday’s crowd. Landry said they were pumped up, which in turn fired her up.
“Portland’s bought in,” she said. “And we’re bought in for Portland as well.”
The Cascade play Oklahoma City again Friday night in Hillsboro. That game is already sold out. The third and final game of the series is Sunday at 9:30 a.m.
