NAMPA, Idaho – Northwest Nazarene softball capped their final home series of the season with a split on Saturday, taking game one 9-5 before falling in a darkness-shortened second game 3-2.
 
NNU moves to 25-9 overall and remains atop the GNAC standings at 8-4. WWU moves to 18-10 on the year and third in the GNAC at 9-7.
 
Between today's games, the Nighthawks honored their three graduating seniors, Brittany Genuardi, Madison Strickler, and Jackie Vargas.
 
NNU has one more series left in the regular season, traveling to Montana State Billings on April 30 and May 1. After that, the GNAC Championships are set to take place from May 6-8 in Monmouth, Ore.
 
Game One: NNU 9, WWU 5
 
After sweeping the first two games of the series yesterday, NNU came out hot in game three with seven runs over the opening two innings. In the first, Maia McNicoll started the scoring with an RBI single, followed by Tori Hensley lacing a two-RBI double to right center to make it 3-0.
 
Four more came across in the bottom of the second, as Sidney Booth launched a three-run homer to center and McNicoll followed with her third homer of the series. WWU got on the board in the third, but the Nighthawks scored again in the bottom of the inning with Abigail Gagnon racing home on a wild pitch.
 
Western Washington pushed runs in both the fourth and fifth innings to cut the deficit to 8-3, but McNicoll extended the NNU lead back to six with an RBI single in the sixth. The Vikings wouldn't go down without a fight, adding two more in the top of the seventh, but the comeback ended there as the Nighthawks held on for the 9-5 victory.
 
Booth got the win on the mound, improving to 12-2 on the year. She went five innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on six hits while striking out six. Hensley finished the final two innings, allowing two runs on three hits with two strikeouts.
 
McNicoll finished 3-4 with three RBI, while Booth was 2-4 with three RBI as well from the plate. Hensley also tallied two hits for the Nighthawks.
 
Game Two: WWU 3, NNU 2
 
Western Washington struck first in the second game on Saturday, pushing across two runs in the top of the first. The Nighthawks responded in the bottom of the second, starting with a Madison Strickler homer down the left field line on her Senior Day.
 
NNU's second run came on a wild play, with Gina Skinner advancing to third on a double by Madison Felter, but then racing home to score after WWU's second baseman muffed the cutoff throw in shallow center.
 
After a scoreless third and fourth, WWU broke the deadlock in the top of the fifth with a Tatum Dow solo homer. With darkness quickly approaching, the game was called after the fifth inning and the Vikings avoided the sweep with the 3-2 win.
 
Senior Jackie Vargas went all five innings for NNU, allowing three runs (one earned) on seven hits while striking out two. Seeing her first action of the series, Skinner went 2-2 at the dish. In her final game at Halle Field, Brittany Genuardi walked all three times she came to the plate.