There were many questions regarding how head coach Heather Tarr was going to revamp a roster that witnessed the departure of multiple superstar fifth-years. After just five innings against No. 17 Nebraska, the No. 10 Washington softball program answered a lot of those questions.

With sophomore pitcher Ruby Meylan (1-0) in the circle, the Huskies (1-0) shut out the Cornhuskers (0-1) 8-0 behind strong performances from the underclassmen. Jordyn Bahl (0-1), who was friends with Meylan growing up in Omaha, was in the circle for Nebraska after transferring from Oklahoma this offseason.

Meylan was excellent in her season debut, giving up just two hits and a walk in five innings pitched while tossing three strikeouts. The Cornhuskers never had much of a chance to produce any offense, only reaching scoring position once, and were unable to produce more than one baserunner at a time.

Freshman Jadyn Glab made an immediate impact to begin her Husky career, finishing 2 for 2 with a three-run home run, 4 RBIs, and a walk. Sophomore Alana Johnson went 2 for 2 with three RBIs, two runs, and a stolen base.

The scoring got started in the bottom of the second inning when Glab delivered an RBI single in her first career at-bat with no outs. The Huskies had runners on first and third with one out but were unable to capitalize.

Washington blew it all open in the third inning.

Junior Rylee Holtorf started the inning with a leadoff single and stole second base to put a runner in scoring position. Sophomore Sydney Stewart drew a walk before a sacrifice bunt advanced runners to second and third. A wild pitch scored Holtorf before an RBI single from Johnson gave Washington a 3-0 lead.

Fifth-year Brooke Nelson advanced to first on a fielding error to put two runners on base, before Glab crushed her second career at-bat for a three-run bomb, catapulting the Huskies to a 6-0 lead.

Washington all but put it away in the fourth inning with a two-RBI double from Johnson to extend the lead to 8-0. Meylan retired the side in the top of the fifth to give the Huskies their first win of the season.

Washington has a big day on Friday coming up, with a matchup against Utah State at 4 pm before a massive matchup against No. 1 Oklahoma at 6:30 pm. A win against the reigning champions Oklahoma can potentially catapult Washington into the top five on opening weekend.