NAMPA, Idaho – Northwest Nazarene softball didn't have things go their way on a cold and windy Monday afternoon, dropping both games of a doubleheader to Central Washington 14-6 and 5-4 to result in a series split with the Wildcats.
The Nighthawks move to 5-10 on the season with one more non-conference series left before GNAC play begins.
Game 1
Both teams tacked two runs on the board in the first inning, with NNU getting theirs from a
Maia McNicoll RBI single and
Abigail Gagnon RBI double.
CWU struck for four runs in the second though, and would go on to score in every inning of the five-inning contest with two in the third, four in the fourth, and two more in the top of the fifth.
The Nighthawks scored in four of the five innings, but never more than two runs in one frame as Central took the 14-6 win via the run rule.
McNicoll, Gagnon, and Booth each had two hits, with McNicoll driving in three runs. In addition to Gagnon's first inning RBI,
Madison Felter and
Mari Kamemoto tallied the other runs batted in.
Game 2
Central jumped out to a lead early again in the second game, drilling a three-run homer to left in the top of the first. NNU cut the deficit to one in the second, with
Jami Obringer doubling home a pair of runs.
The 3-2 score held until the sixth, when CWU added to their lead with two more tallies.
Those runs proved to be important for the Wildcats, as NNU rallied in the bottom of the seventh with an RBI double from
Clarissa Moreno and RBI single from
Tori Hensley to again cut the deficit to a single run with no outs. However, two popups and a flyout to right ended the threat and the game.
Tori Hensley threw a complete game for NNU, striking out seven. She also paired with Moreno to each record two hits offensively.
Next Up
NNU will host their second-straight weekend of softball, welcoming Western Oregon to Nampa for another non-conference series against a GNAC opponent on Friday and Saturday, March 3 and 4.
