Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 PORTLAND, Ore. – Thanks to a sweep of Concordia on Saturday, the Northwest Nazarene University softball team is headed to the postseason for the first time in program history.

The Nighthawks won 7-0 and 11-3 to guarantee themselves a spot in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference tournament May 3-5.

"When coach (Rich) Wagner brought it up it was kind of a surreal moment," NNU junior Abigail Otto said. "To know we are finally going to the playoffs is amazing."

The Nighthawks (26-19 overall, 17-7 GNAC) set the program record for single-season wins Friday and conference wins Saturday. They have a one-game lead on Central Washington, plus they hold the tiebreaker, in the race for the No. 1 seed.

Before 2018, the Nighthawks had never won more than 23 games in a season (2006 and 2017) or finished over .500. The four-game sweep was also the first in program history and the team's six-game winning streak is the longest in program history.

Three years ago, when Otto came into the program, the Nighthawks were coming off of a 9-37 campaign.

"We were really young when I got here," she said. "I was looking forward to the playoffs in the future when we got older. It's great that it is all coming together."

On Saturday, Otto was a big reason NNU clinched the playoff spot.

She drove in five runs with a double and triple in the nightcap. Anna Olson added two hits and two RBIs, while Anna Williams was 2-for-2 with two runs and an RBI. Rylee Thomas got the win in the circle, allowing three runs – two earned – on six hits with no walks and four strikeouts.

"All 20 players helped us win two games today," Wagner said. "We had to make adjustments all day offensively and that happened as a team."

In the opener, Williams and Lily Paschal each drove in two runs. Shelbie Martinez, Olson and Lisa Sylvester added RBIs. Jordan Adams earned her 16th win on the season, allowing just one hit in seven shutout innings.

"Abi had some big hits again today in key moments," Wagner said. "Rylee and Jordan were outstanding again today."

The Nighthawks will close the regular season with a four-game series at Montana State Billings on Friday and Saturday.