TACOMA, Wash. — After splitting their games the day before, the George Fox softball team came back to finish their four game series against Puget Sound with a pair of blowout wins after another doubleheader. The first game ended with a score of 9-3, while the second ended 9-1. 

How It Happened - Game One
The first two innings were highly defensive as both teams struggled to find any gaps in the field. For George Fox, pitcher Nicole Ledendecker and GFU's defense were putting up a wall the Loggers could not get past. It wasn't until the third inning that Fox was able to claim the first runs of the game. Kiley Harris was the first to put the ball in motion and after squaring up a 3-2 pitch, she sent the ball over the center field wall for a solo homer. It didn't take long before the Lady Bruins had more offensive action; next up to bat was Tinley Taylor who stroked a ball to center field that landed her at second in scoring position. Joining the hitting train next was Corine Doran whose hard hit down the right field line allowed Tinley to come into score. 

Riley Pirkle was next for George Fox and with a solid base hit to center, Doran was able to come sliding safely into home. However, Pirkle wasn't at first for long; almost immediately after, she was able to sneak in a steal to place her in scoring position at second. The next two batters — Sami Stadlander and Emily Benavidez — were able to practice good-discipline at the plate, and both were awarded a walk which loaded the bases. While Morgan Palmer was unfortunately hit in her at-bat, it was enough to bring Pirkle in to score to conclude a big offensive inning for Fox, 4-0. 

In the circle, Ledendecker continued to make life difficult for Puget Sound, and after a one-two-three top bottom of the third, the Lady Bruins were creating chaos in the field once again in the top of the fourth. Kayla Mashino started things off this time with a solid single to left side, before she snuck in a steal to place her at second. Shortly after, Mashino was showing off her speed on the base path once again; not only did she steal third, but her steals put pressure on the Loggers leading to a UPS error which helped Mashino cross home plate without any problems, 5-0. 

However, the Lady Bruins were far from finished. Doran started things back up again with a shot to the right side that helped her reach first. Shortly after, Pirkle had her own strong base-hit to move both her and Doran in scoring position at second and third. All it took was a SAC fly from Kylee Manibusan to bring Doran in to score and to add one more run to GFU's score to make it 6-0. Despite the Bruins hot streak, it was in the same inning that Puget Sound found theirs. Thanks to a couple base hits, a homer, and a George Fox error, the Loggers quickly cut the deficit in score to half, 6-3. 

Even though Puget Sound had answered back, Fox remained unfazed and picked their offense up right where they left off. Benavidez singled up the middle before a Palmer walk helped her reach second. After a wild pitch from the Loggers, Benavidez and Palmer were both in scoring position when Harris approached the plate. With a well-placed single down the infield line for Harris, it not only scored Benavidez, but Palmer as well to create even more distance in the score. Immediately after a Harris steal, she was quickly running once again because of a line drive to center field from Doran; it was just enough for Harris to come sliding into home to make the score an impressive 9-3. 
Over the next final innings, the Loggers attempted to rally back, but each attempt didn't yield any more runs. George Fox's defense and Ledendecker continued to close any gaps in the field, unwilling to let Puget Sound score until the bottom of the seventh. While the Loggers were able to get one back off of a double and a pass ball, Fox didn't allow them to score any more runs, leading to a dominant Lady Bruin 9-3 win. 

How It Happened - Game Two
Much like the game before, the second game began with a focus on defense. This time around Alisson Heater was on the rubber for GFU; thanks to her and Fox's defense, the team was able to turn a double play to end the bottom of the first to get their bats going in the second. Stadlander was the first to get on base after a walk before she found herself on second after Grace Wilson put the pressure on the Loggers and reached first on an error. All it took was a strategic bunt from Mashino to load the bases and the Lady Bruins made the most of the opportunity; Stadlander was able to score off of a pass ball to put George Fox on the board. However, Fox wasn't finished — especially Doran. With a strong swing, Doran tripled to the right side to not only score Wilson, but Mashino as well to give the Lady Bruins a three run advantage, 3-0. 

GFU continued to control the field through their defense, but it wasn't until the top of the fourth that they got a chance to score again. After a Mashino walk, she speedily stole second to place her in scoring position. With a frozen rope to center from Taylor, Mashino was able to cross home plate while Taylor made it to second without any problems. Next up was Doran who continued to create chaos in the field; after a Puget Sound error, Taylor slid safely into home to widen the gap in score to 5-0.

While UPS was able to get one back in the fourth, Heater and Fox's defense was able to shut down the Logger's rally and get out of the inning with three left on base. By the sixth inning, the Bruins were far from slowing down and Taylor made sure of that. With a first pitch swing, Taylor hit a dinger over the right field wall to add yet another run to GFU's score, 6-1. After a quick defensive bottom of the sixth, George Fox's bats were back at it again in the seventh. After back-to-back doubles from Harris and Stadlander, the two were put in scoring position. Wilson was able to put the ball in motion and make the Logger's defense fumble the ball, leading Harris to come sliding into home, 7-1.

Despite their lead, the Lady Bruins were far from finished. While Mia Cantu unfortunately grounded out, the hard hit was just enough to bring Stadlander home to score and to move Wilson to second. Finally, with a shot to the right side from Doran, Wilson was able to come around to score to end the top of the seventh. Once again, Puget Sound tried to make a comeback, but they couldn't get past Heater and GFU's stellar defense leading to the Lady Bruins second win of the day, 9-1. 

Top Performances
Fox started off the day with an abundance of offensive action in game one. Corine Doran led the team in hits with three, while Riley Pirkle and Kiley Harris followed close behind with two apiece; Harris also had a total of three RBIs and Doran produced two as well. Defensively, Nicole Ledendecker pitched the entire game and was awarded the win, making her new record 9-2; Ledendecker also recorded five strikeouts and only allowed three earned runs. It was clear in game two that GFU's offense was far from slowing down. The team had 14 total hits with Pirkle and Stadlander recording three apiece, while Harris, Taylor, and Doran each had two. Doran also led the team in RBIs with four and Taylor followed with two. On the rubber in game two was Allison Heater; after pitching all seven innings, she ended the game with two strikeouts and only one earned run. 

What It Means
George Fox rises to 16-16 (10-10 NWC), while Puget Sound falls to 5-25 (3-17 NWC). 

Coach's Thoughts
"It was a good way to end to the road trip today," said Bruin head coach Nathan Ohta. "We made some good adjustments at the plate, and will look to carry that momentum into our series next weekend."

What Happens Next
The Lady Bruins will have a small break before they travel to Forest Grove, Ore. for their next four game series against Pacific. The series will begin with a doubleheader on Saturday, April 18; first pitch is scheduled for 12:00 pm.