NEWBERG, Ore. – In a doubleheader against the visiting Oneonta Red Dragons, the George Fox softball team walked away with two wins. Winning the first game, 9-5, and the second 6-5 after some late-game heroics.

How It Happened - Game One
George Fox and Oneonta both held each other scoreless for the first two innings of game one, before the Red Dragons got things started with an RBI double in the second, then scored another run later in the inning to make the score 2-0. It didn't take GFU long to respond, as they put up four runs in the fourth inning, scoring on RBI singles from Sydney Sandifer, Aliya Harmon, Chrisilla Zagala, and another run from a sac fly off the bat of Nicole Campa. After four innings, the Bruins held a 4-2 lead. 

Oneonta would slowly claw their way back – scoring one run in the fifth, and two-run runs in the sixth – and tied the game. GFU responded with another multi-run inning in the bottom half of the sixth inning, scoring five runs, three of which came on a three RBI double from Kamryn Potter. The Bruins left the sixth inning with a comfortable, 9-5 lead. Elise Wilkinson came on to the mound for the last inning, facing just three batters and ending the game as Fox won, 9-5. 

How It Happened - Game Two
The Bruins got on the board first, scoring a run in the bottom half of the first inning off of a Sandifer RBI double. GFU held that lead until the third inning when Oneonta picked up two runs on a double to left center, which gave the Red Dragons a 2-1 edge. 

In the bottom of the fourth inning, George Fox managed to get runners on second and third with one out and tied the game a batter later with a sacrifice fly from Harmon. With the game tied 2-2 in the fifth inning, Oneonta managed to put two runs on the board and take a 4-2 lead. The Bruins responded with a run in the bottom half, but couldn't bring home a runner on third, and the fifth inning ended with Fox down, 4-3. 

Sandifer would tie the game soon, though, as she picked up another RBI with a solo shot over the fence in left field. With the game tied, 4-4, at the end of the sixth inning, it set up a climatic final frame. 

The Red Dragons struck in the seventh, taking a 5-4 lead with an RBI single with two outs. Fox was able to get out of the inning after Sandifer caught a runner stealing at third, sending the game into the bottom of the seventh with Fox down one. The Bruins wasted no time getting a runner on base, as Campa drew a walk to get a runner on first. After a fielder's choice got the runner out on second, Makalya Noone stepped up to the plate with one out and a runner on first, down one. With the game on the line, Noone dropped a ball into left field, and then she and the runner managed to score after a fielding error by the left fielder, giving Fox the win. GFU took the second game by a score of 6-5. 

Top Performances
Sydney Sandifer went 2-3 with a double and a home run in the second game of the day and had four hits and three RBIs over the whole day. Makayla Noone went 2-4 with a double and the game-winning base hit and run in game two, and starting pitcher from game one Emma Eastman threw 5.2 innings with five strikeouts. On the bump for the day, Madelyn Loughary and Kiley Harris picked up the wins. 

What it Means
The Bruins improve to 7-5 on the season, and Oneonta falls to 3-7. 

What Comes Next
The Bruins continue their homestand with a weekend series against the Puget Sound Loggers next weekend, starting with a doubleheader on Saturday, March 23. The first pitch for game one will be at noon, at Morse Athletic Fields.