Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

SELAH, Wash. — The Wildcats opened the door and Northwest Nazarene made their generous hosts pay.

Abigail Otto blasted a two-run home run and Shelbie Martinez added a two-run single during a game-winning rally that helped the Crusaders earn a road split with Central Washington in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play on Friday.

The late heroics by Otto and Martinez highlighted a five-run rally as NNU grabbed a 7-6 comeback win in the day's opener before falling, 10-5, in the nightcap.

"Today was a big step forward for us," NNU head coach Rich Wagner said. "We have been working hard on bouncing back and staying mentally tough when things don't go right. We did not have our best day defensively but we overcome that by staying mentally focused.

"We got a great pitching performance from Brooke (Bonsen) today and a couple huge swings from Abi and Shelbie.

"I'm super proud of the way this team fought today."

Down 5-2 headed to the top of the seventh inning, NNU (8-11 overall, 1-1 GNAC) got some help from a dropped fly ball in its final at-bat, and Otto made the host Wildcats pay, blasting a two-run home run to center-field, igniting the Crusader comeback.

Another dropped fly ball led to the eventual game-winner, a two-out, two-run single to center off Martinez's bat that gave the Crusaders a 7-5 lead.

Just enough as Bonsen (5-5) struck out four and battled throughout to earn the win, which NNU closed by throwing out the potential tying run at third base in the bottom of the seventh inning.

Brittany Genuardi went 3-for-3 at the plate and Martinez had a pair of hits in the opener for NNU, which dug itself a deep hole in the second game but kept battling.

Down 8-0 early, Otto and Kylie Orr each drove in a run to start the comeback, and a three-run home run by Martinez got the Crusaders as close as 9-5 back in the fifth inning before the comeback came up short.

Martinez's three RBIs in the nightcap led the way for NNU, which wraps up its four-game series with the Wildcats on the road on Saturday with another doubleheader, schedule to begin at 1 p.m. (Mountain time).