Lady Wolves Takes Softball Doubleheader

The Wolves improved to 23-14 overall with the victories and to 11-5 in the GNAC.

Trina Dorn

MONMOUTH, Ore. - The Western Oregon softball team did its part to partially break up the log jam atop the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings, claiming a pair of 7-2 and 6-1 victories over Montana State Billings on Friday afternoon at the WOU Softball Field.

The Wolves improved to 23-14 overall with the victories and to 11-5 in the GNAC. The Yellowjackets, who were tied with WOU for second place coming into the game at 9-5, are now 20-19 on the year and 9-7 in conference play.

Heading into the week, five teams were within a game of each other in the GNAC standings. Seattle University sits percentage points on top of the pile at 10-4.

The Wolves, ranked seventh in the latest NCAA Division II west region poll, have now won seven consecutive games.

In the first game, both teams traded runs in the first inning as Trina Dorn singled home Tyler Sutherland for WOU and Leslie Davis knocked in Shay Oberg for the Yellowjackets. MSUB then took a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning, taking advantage of a pair of WOU errors before Kelly Parsons doubled home Stephanie Gosselin.

The Wolves then exploded for five bizarre runs in the fourth inning. Jamie Becker led off the inning with a home run to tie the score (2-2), and two plays later, WOU had a runner on second base with one out and Sutherland the batter. The Wolves leading hitter fouled a ball off her eyebrow, forcing her out of the game and sending a cold Tierra Cuba to the plate. Cuba responded with a single up the middle to give WOU a 3-2 lead.

The hosts then loaded the bases for Dorn, who blasted a shot over both fences and the bleachers in left field. But instead of getting credit for a grand slam, Dorn's shot will go into the books as a three-run triple, as one of her teammates touched her right before she was greeted by a mob at home plate.

WOU added one more run in the sixth inning on an RBI-single by Amanda Fleer to make the final count 7-2. Sister Katie Fleer improved to 13-4 with the win, giving up only one earned run, scattering seven hits and fanning 12.

Oberg had three of MSUB's seven hits, while Lisa Moore finished 2-for-2. Dorn was 3-for-4 with four RBI to lead WOU, and Amanda Fleer also had three hits in four trips to the plate.

In the second game, Western Oregon broke open a 3-1 game with three runs in the bottom of the sixth to secure the doubleheader sweep.

Jessica Hallmark ripped a three-run double in that stanza, the only extra base hit by either team in the game. Dorn laced a two-run single in the third inning, giving her six RBI on the day.

Whitney had two hits in the game for WOU, as did Cuba. Jenna Haacke and Davis did the same for the Yellowjackets.

WOU's Jessica Wood and Christina Cooke combined to hold MSUB to one run from the pitcher's circle. Cooke got the win in relief, tossing 3.2 innings and scattering four hits, no runs or walks, and she fanned three.

The Wolves will hit the road this coming week, traveling to Northwest Nazarene on April 24 (Thursday) and to Central Washington on April 26-27).

Source: WOU Athletics

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