Box Score Game 1
Box Score Game 2

NEWBERG, Ore.  – Bringing the Northwest Conference portion of their 2009 softball season to a close, the George Fox University Bruins dropped a pair of decisions 4-2 and 14-5 to the visiting University of Puget Sound Loggers Sunday afternoon here at Morse Field.

The Bruins were victims of their defense in the first game, committing four errors, including three costly ones in a four-run Puget Sound 5th that broke open a scoreless game.  Amelia Kurashige-Elliott reached second on a dropped throw at first to open the inning and later scored on an error at second on Megan Janes's grounder.  After an infield single by Meghan Watson, Aryn Grause tripled in two and then scored on another muffed throw at first.

The Bruins got one run back in the 6th on singles by Krystle Halvorsen and Kerstyn Tsuruda, a hit-by-pitch to Audrey Dove, and a bases-loaded walk to Chelsea Bradely.  In the 7th, singles by Amy Peterson, Pam Wilkins, and Tsuruda made it a 4-2 game with two outs and brought the tying run to the plate, but Logger hurler Auriel Sperberg got Dove to pop up for the final out.

Sperberg (9-13) took a perfect game into the 5th before Peterson broke it up with a solid two-out single up the middle.  The right-hander finished with six hits allowed, seven strikeouts, and one walk.  Southpaw Bradely (4-24) was the tough-luck loser for the Bruins, allowing only five hits and no earned runs in a complete-game effort, with six strikeouts and two walks.

Watson and Grause had two hits each for the Loggers, while Tsuruda and Peterson had two safeties apiece for the Bruins.

In the second game, the Loggers banged out 19 hits and built up a big early lead, then survived a 5th-inning comeback try by the Bruins.  Janes singled and scored on Grause's double in the 1st for an early 1-0 UPS lead.  In the 2nd, Nikki LaFemina singled in a run, scored on a wild pitch, and Janes singled to score Hilary Rice, who had walked and stolen second, to make it 4-0. UPS tacked on four more in the 4th, the big blow Victoria Raeburn's three-run homer to left, her fourth of the season.

Down 8-0, the Bruins rallied with five unearned runs in the 5th to prevent the game from ending early.  Missi Bourgo reached on a throwing error at second to start the inning and Pam Wilkins walked.  After a force out and a fly out, Dove reached on a throwing error at third as Wilkins scored.  Bradely singled in Halvorsen, and Dove also scored when the hit was mishandled in left.  Shelby Briske followed with a drive to the top of the fence down the left-field line where Kurashige-Elliott made a valiant try but slammed into the fence.  The ball rolled free into the left-field corner, allowing Briske to circle the bases for an inside-the-park home run, her third round-tripper of the season.

Sperberg entered the game at that point in place of starter Grause (3-6) and retired the last seven batters for her first save.  The Loggers scored three insurance runs in both the 6th and 7th innings to win going away.  Starter Erin Lee (0-6) took the loss for the Bruins.

Raeburn led the Logger offense with four hits, scoring two and driving in four.  Janes, Grause, and Kelsey Scanlan each had three hits, and Watson collected two hits while scoring three times.  Bradely was 3-for-3 for the Bruins.

George Fox (4-31, NWC 3-23) concludes its season Saturday with a non-conference doubleheader at home at 12:00 noon against the University of Dallas.  Puget Sound (14-21, NWC 8-14) visits Pacific Lutheran University Saturday for a conference pair, also at noon.