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NAMPA, Idaho — This was the kind of send-off the Crusaders wanted for their seniors, a resounding victory that also keeps Northwest Nazarene's playoff hopes alive.

Seniors Morgan Thome and Ali Schauer were honored between games of a Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader at Halle Field on the NNU campus, then promptly came out and led the Crusaders to an 8-1 win over visiting Western Oregon.

Thome had a pair of hits and an RBI in win, while Schauer added a base hit and another RBI, as the victory erased the memory of a 6-0 setback in the day's opener.

"It does feels good, especially in the second game where our bats came alive and we had all these fans out here for us," said Thome of the victory as she finished her senior weekend 4-for-9 with her first NNU home run and three RBIs.

"Ali and I just wanted to go out big on our home-stand," Thome added.

Schauer finished her senior weekend 5-for-14 with a double and an RBI, an at-bat which capped a three-run rally in the bottom of the fifth inning of the nightcap that put the Crusaders (16-26 overall, 10-14 GNAC) on top 4-1.

Cassidy Fifield started the rally with a double, then she scored on a Lily Paschal double that broke a 1-1 tie.

Kylie Orr then doubled home Paschal, the third straight two-bagger for NNU, which took the 4-1 lead on Schauer's RBI groundout.
 

Paschal and Orr each added a two-run single in the bottom of the sixth inning, breaking the game wide open for NNU, which got on the board when Thome singled down the line in left to plate Lisa Sylvester in the bottom of the second inning.

Kendall Goodwin (6-12) struck out three in the complete-game win, scattering six hits, while Paschal, Orr and Thome each had a pair of hits for NNU to lead the attack.

That erased the memory of a 6-0 setback in the opener, a game that saw the Crusaders strand six base-runners and get just a hit each from Orr, Schauer, Paschal and Thome.

But the split keeps NNU's postseason hopes alive as the team heads to Montana State Billings for back-to-back doubleheaders on Friday and Saturday.

The Crusaders sit four games out of the fourth and final GNAC playoff spot with four games remaining.

"It's nice, it's nice to end on a high note so we can work hard this next week in practice," Thome said, looking ahead.