LACEY, Wash. – Northwest Nazarene softball bounced back for a pair of wins on Saturday at Saint Martin's, winning 8-0 and 7-1 to earn a series split.
The Nighthawks and Saints are now tied again atop the GNAC standings, each at 15-5 in conference play, while NNU improves to 27-16 overall.
Game One
NNU jumped on SMU right away, scoring three runs in the first inning as
Maia McNicoll drove in a run with a single and
Abigail Gagnon followed with a two-run double.
Two more came across in the third on an RBI single from
Ivy Hommel, and another two in the fourth as
Madison Felter and
Emma Mulligan each drove in a run to make it 7-0. The Nighthawks made it 8-0 in the fifth, with
Tori Hensley notching an RBI single.
That was enough to end the game after five frames, as
Sidney Booth tossed a one-hit shutout with five strikeouts. Hensley finished with three hits, while McNicoll and Gagnon each had two.
Game Two
Ivy Hommel got the scoring started on just the second batter of game two, launching a solo home run to left field. Saint Martin's tied it up in the bottom of the inning, though, and the 1-1 tie would continue all the way to the fifth inning.
The Nighthawks finally broke through in the fifth, starting with a Mulligan RBI double. Hommel then drove in a run with a sacrifice fly and another came across on an error to make it 4-1. NNU would add three more in the seventh, with
Charlotte Forniss hitting a solo homer and runs coming across on a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch of Booth and a McNicoll sacrifice fly.
NNU scored their seven runs on eight hits, with Mulligan and Hensley each picking up two. Hensley also got the win in the circle, going 6.1 innings and allowing just one run on three hits while striking out three.
Next Up
The Nighthawks will now return home for their final series of the regular season, hosting Simon Fraser for four games from April 29-30. After that, NNU will head back to Lacey for the GNAC Championships on May 5-7.
