SPOKANE, Wash. – Collecting double-digit hits twice - 10 in the first game and 16 in the second - the Whitworth University Pirates swept a Northwest Conference softball doubleheader from the visiting George Fox University Bruins 5-0 and 10-4 Sunday afternoon here at Marks Field, giving them a 3-1 edge in the four-game weekend series.

George Fox slipped to 19-9 overall and 8-8 in the conference, while Whitworth improved to 22-8 overall and 14-4 in the league.  The Bruins remained two away from their record for wins in a season, which they achieved in 1994 when they went 21-8 and won both the Northwest Conference of Independent Colleges and NAIA District 2 titles.

Game 1 - at Whitworth 5, George Fox 0

In the opener, the Bruins were held to two Kat Hylton singles by Madi Perez (11-4), who went the distance.  Erin Hento (9-5) threw four innings for the Bruins, allowing five hits and four runs, only one of them earned, with four strikeouts and one walk, while Allyssa DenDekker went the final two innings and allowed one run.

Whitworth took a 3-0 in the 3rd on a three-run home run by Shannon Wessell, her first of the year, but all three runs were unearned due to a Bruin error that kept the inning alive.  RBI singles by Tessa Matthews in the 4th and Sacha Clow in the 5th gave the Pirates some insurance.  Wessel and Matthews each had two hits for the Pirates.

Game 2 - at Whitworth 10, George Fox 4

In the nightcap, the Bruins had early leads of 3-0 and 4-2 but could not hold off the Whitworth offense.  The Bruins got off to a 1st-inning lead when Kayla Anderson singled in Felicia Chavez, who had singled and advanced on two wild pitches, and Amanda Woods lined her sixth home run of the season to left-center.

The Bucs got two back in the 2nd on a two-run single by Peyton McMahon, but the Bruins went up 4-2 in the 3rd, Courtney Howard doubling and scoring on a two-out error at short.  The Pirates tied it in the home half on a two-run double by Taylor Gilbert. 

Whitworth took control with a four-run 5th on an RBI single by Clow, a run-scoring double by Gilbert, an RBI single by Kelsey Stroshine, and a sacrifice fly by Lyss Martinez.  The Pirates added two more insurance runs in the 6th in run-producing singles by Clow and Stroshine.

Woods got the start for the Bruins and surrendered four runs before being relieved by DenDekker (6-4), who eventually took the loss, in the 3rd.  Gilbert (5-2) got the win in relief of starter Riley Fritz, who did not get out of the 1st, tossing 5.1 innings while allowing one run.  Perez took over for Gilbert in the middle of the 6th and earned her third save.

The Bruins collected 10 hits, with Chavez, who had a double, and Woods getting two hits each.  Wessel, Clow, and Gilbert each went 3-3 for the Pirates, while McMahon and Stroshine had two hits apiece.

NEXT: George Fox will play its fourth and final makeup game with Lewis & Clark Thursday at home at 4:30 p.m. … Second-place Whitworth hosts league-leading Linfield College for four next weekend, with Saturday and Sunday doubleheaders starting at 12:00 noon each day.