NEWBERG, Ore. – The George Fox University softball team hit four total home runs over the final two games of their four-game series against the Willamette Bearcats, winning the first game 8-6, and the second game 4-1.
How It Happened – Game One
The Bruins fell behind early, starting the bottom half of the first inning down, 2-0. However,
Sharon Tomei got the offense going for Fox right away, hitting a leadoff solo homer to start the home half. After Tomei's solo shot,
Kiley Harris got to third after a walk, groundout, and a passed ball. With Harris on third,
Bethany Wilkes hit a single to left field, scoring Harris and tying the game 2-2 going into the second inning.
The Bruins defense pulled a rare, stat-keepers-nightmare double play in the top of the second: With runners on first and second, catcher
Sydney Sandifer threw to second when the runner took a large lead, starting a pickle-play between second and third. After six throws between the second baseman,
Nicole Campa, third baseman,
Grace Wilson, and shortstop,
Brooke Riggins, the Bruins tagged out the runner at third. The wild sequence wasn't done yet, as Riggins ran at the runner stuck between first and second, she fired it to Tomei at first, and the runner took off for second, which in the chaos of the pickle at third, was now being covered by center fielder
Makayla Noone. After some back and forth between Tomei and Noone, Noone dove to tag the runner as she tried to go back to first, getting the second out of the sequence and ending the inning.
The Bearcats scored another run in the third on a fielder's choice, but the Bruins in the bottom half of that same inning responded with another home run, this one from Wilkes with a runner on, that gave the Bruins back the lead 4-3 at the end of the third. In the fourth, the Bruins got their third home run on the day, this one from Campa to deep center field to score two runs and push the lead to 6-3.
The Bearcats were done yet though, as they scored a run in the fourth, and then two more in the sixth to tie the game at 6-6. The Bruins made sure the game wasn't tied for long, scoring in the bottom half of the sixth after some nifty baserunning from Campa forced a rundown at second with a runner at third, who scored after an errant throw ended up in the shallow outfield, and then
Sydney Sandifer drove home Campa with an RBI single to make the score 8-6.
Nicole Ledendecker took the circle for the final frame, going 1-2-3 and wrapping up the 8-6 win for the Bruins.
How It Happened – Game Two
The Bearcats loaded the bases in the first inning with two outs, putting immediate pressure on Ledendecker, who got the start in game two. However, after picking up two strikeouts earlier in the inning, Ledendecker calmly got the Bearcats' third baseman to pop up to end the away half of the inning. The Bruins got a pair of runs in the bottom half of the first, scoring both Tomei and Noone on wild pitches and passed balls, giving the Bruins an early 2-0 lead.
The Bearcats picked up an unearned run of their own, scoring in the top of the third on an error by GFU. The Bruins got the run back with an RBI single from
Grace Wilson in the bottom of the fourth inning to push the lead back up to two, 3-1.
Tomei had not seen anything in the strike zone throughout the day after she hit her early game-one homer – she was intentionally walked three times in game one – however, in the bottom of the fifth, the Bearcats made the mistake of challenging her on a 1-2 count, which she made them pay for by hitting a moonshot home run that gave the Bruins a commanding three-run, 4-1 lead.
Ledendecker was dominant in the final innings, working out of a jam in the top of the sixth and going 1-2-3 in the seventh for the second time on the day, wrapping up the Bruins' four-game sweep of NWC rivals Willamette with a 4-1 win in game two.
Top Performances
Sharon Tomei went 3-4 over seven at-bats, hitting two home runs and getting on base six times.
Bethany Wilkes went 2-4 in game one with a home run, picking up three RBIs in game one.
Makayla Noone added highlight plays with the glove in center field, making a diving catch in game one and robbing a home run in game two.
Nicole Ledendecker threw seven innings, giving up zero earned runs and striking out four in the complete game.
Coach's Thoughts
"We came out in game one and made some good adjustments from yesterday against their ace," said Bruins head coach
Nathan Ohta. "We were able to put together some quality at-bats, and our pitching was excellent today. Any time you can sweep a series, it's a good weekend."
What It Means
The Bruins sit at 18-10 after the wins, including 12-4 in NWC play. Willamette is now 12-12 (4-10 NWC).
What Comes Next
The Bruins travel to eastern Washington, playing Whitworth in Spokane, Wash. on April 18, with game one starting at noon.
