Wolves host NNU, travel to MSUB
The Western Oregon softball team continues its homestand Thursday (April 21) when Northwest Nazarene visits for a Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader, set for 1 p.m. PST. The Wolves finish the week on the road, meeting Montana State Billings for a pair of GNAC contests beginning at 12 p.m. PST.

On deck
Western returns home next week to face Simon Fraser in a GNAC doubleheader Thursday (April 28) at 1 p.m. No. 19 Western Washington comes to Monmouth for a twinbill Saturday (May 1) at 11 a.m.

News and notes
Senior Jessica Wood was a perfect 4-for-4 against SMU in Sunday's series finale. She hit her third career home run in the third inning. She pitched in three of the four games, starting all three. She tallied 18 strikeouts for the series . . . Freshman Ashley Worthey got hits in all three of her plate appearances in the series opener against SMU. She registered two runs, two RBIs, and one stolen base . . . Freshman Alex Hillmick's 3.10 earned run average is the third lowest in the GNAC, and the lowest of any player with at least a 3.00 ERA. She leads the league in ground out putouts with 187 . . . Sophomore Andrea Bailey leads the conference in stolen bases with 11 . . . The Wolves' 37 stolen bases ranks first in the GNAC, and are the only team stealing more than one base per game.

Scouting Northwest Nazarene
NNU enters its date with Western having lost seven straight games. As a team, NNU bats .271 with 47 doubles and 34 home runs. Three Crusaders are batting better than .300, led by junior Kristin Refsland (.346). Junior Arielle Chao (.330) leads the team in hits with 38. Junior Elizabeth Beaty (.321) has a team-leading 11 home runs and slugging percentage of .756. Junior Chelsey Anderson owns a 3.40 earned run average in 22 appearances (7-8). She has allowed 137 hits in 111.1 innings of work, giving up 54 earned runs. Batters are hitting .289 against he with 63 strikeouts.

The series: Wolves vs. Crusaders
WOU holds a decisive 41-11 series record over the Crusaders. The two squads first met in 2002 (a 6-1 WOU win). The Wolves are 15-4 against NNU in Monmouth and currently own an 11-game home winning streak. NNU's last road win against Western came on April 17, 2006 (a 3-1 win). The two teams met earlier this season at NNU, with the Crusaders taking three of four games.

Inside stats against NNU
Senior Jessica Hallmark is slugging an otherworldly .959 against NNU. She has hit 11 of her 40 career home runs against the Crusaders. She also has a career .438 batting average and .469 on base percentage against NNU . . . Junior Bailey Rueck has a career .732 slugging percentage against the Crusaders, thanks in part to three home runs and seven doubles. Her career batting average (.446) and on base percentage (.492) are also above .400. Hallmark started her career against NNU with hits in her first seven games, and 13 of her first 15 . . . Junior Kendra George is slugging .574 against NNU with one home run, two triples, and three doubles. She also has two stolen bases and three sacrifice hits . . . Senior Jessica Wood has a lifetime 2.61 earned run average against the Crusaders, and has an opposing batting average of .213. In 51.0 innings of work, Wood has allowed 40 hits, 19 earned runs, and 18 walks to go along with 42 strikeouts, including a ten-strikeout game. She has a career 7-1 record against NNU in nine appearances.

Scouting Montana State Billings
The 'Jackets are winners in seven of their last nine games, and took two from No. 19 Western Washington in their last home series. MSUB carries some big bats, most notably senior Kelly Parsons (.402 ba, 12 hr, 32 rbi, .845 slug), senior Kaycee Hoffman (.361 ba, 11 2b, 13 hr, 38 rbi, .737 slug), and junior Meg Harasymczuk (.350 ba, 10 2b, 11 hr, 32 rbi). Junior Annaleisha Parsley has started 23 games for MSUB (9-9). She owns an earned run average of 4.02 and has given up 153 hits and 80 earned runs in 139.1 innings of work. Her opposing batting average is .285 and she has tallied 95 strikeouts on the year.

The series: Wolves vs. 'Jackets
Western trails the all-time series with MSUB 16-18, and are 4-6 in road games against the 'Jackets. The Wolves took three of four games in Billings last year. The series began in 2001 (a 9-0 WOU victory). The previous meeting saw both teams with two games, with the 'Jackets taking the first two before WOU won the final two.

Inside stats against MSUB
Senior Jessica Hallmark is batting a career .406 against MSUB, with a slugging percentage of .667. She has seven career home runs and four career doubles against the 'Jackets . . . Junior Bailey Rueck is hitting .310 against MSUB, and is slugging .448. She has two home runs, two doubles, and two sacrifice flys in 20 career games . . . In 31 at-bats against the 'Jackets, sophomore Andrea Bailey has tallied one home run, two doubles, and one sacrifice fly. She is batting .323 against MSUB with a slugging percentage of .484 . . . Senior Jessica Wood has a lifetime earned run average of 3.30 against MSUB. 'Jacket batters are hitting .209 against her through 55.1 innings of work. She has allowed 42 hits and 26 earned runs while striking out 55.