MONMOUTH, Ore. – A pair of outstanding pitching performance by junior Alyson Boytz and freshman Lizzet Dominguez helped Western Oregon University's softball team begin its defense of last year's Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) regular season and tournament titles with a double header sweep of Northwest Nazarene University, 6-2 & 8-3, Friday at the WOU Softball Field.

"It feels great, as NNU has a good team and feel that we got fortunate there," said Head Coach Lonny Sargent. "Both of our pitchers did a fantastic job and our offense took some pressure off of them, which is nice."

Western Oregon (5-11, 2-0 GNAC) was led offensively by senior Amanda Evola with a combined 6-for-8 performance that included a perfect 4-for-4 showing in Game #2, while sophomore Emma Alfonso added four hits in seven at-bats that included a pair of doubles and two home runs. Sophomore Kelsie Gardner also chipped in offensively with three hits, while junior Brandy Knowles also registered multiple hits on the afternoon.

Northwest Nazarene (2-11, 0-3 GNAC) got a combined three hits from Whitney Carlton, while Kendra Day, Ashley Pesek, and Lily Paschal added two hits each. Both of Pesek's hit were solo home runs adding one in each game.

GAME #1 — WESTERN OREGON 6, NORTHWEST NAZARENE 2

Friday's opener would not see any scoring until the second inning when the two teams combined for six of the game's eight runs with Northwest Nazarene getting on the board first via a solo home run over the center field fence by Pesek before Ali Schauer added a run-scoring single to right field that handed the Crusaders an early 2-0 lead and also marked the first time all season that Western Oregon had allowed runs in the second inning.

In the bottom of the second inning, the Wolves responded with four runs of their own with Gardner pulling WOU within a single run (2-1) on a fielder's choice RBI that brought home sophomore Ashley Radziuk before Evola tied the game with a single that brought home Gardner. Knowles would bring home the eventual game-winning RBI with a two-run double to center field that scored both Alfonso and Evola to give the Wolves a 4-2 lead after two innings of play.

The only other runs would come off the bat of Alfonso, as she hit solo home runs in the bottom of the fourth and sixth innings, respectively, and in the process raised her season batting average by over 100 points with a 3-for-4 performance at the plate in the opener.

Boytz would go the distance in the circle for the Wolves allowing two earned runs on four hits, while striking out a season-high seven NNU hitters en route to earning her second win of the season.

When asked about Boytz's performance, Sargent said, "I think that (Alyson) warmed up as the game went along. She kept getting better and I could not say anything more about that as far as giving her advise, as she kept throwing the ball really well."

For Northwest Nazarene, Brianna Kinghorn, Pesek, Carlton, and Schauer would be the only players to register a hit for the Crusaders with Pesek going the distance for NNU allowing six runs (three earned) on eight hits with a game-high 10 K's.

GAME #2 — WESTERN OREGON 8, NORTHWEST NAZARENE 3

In the finale, a pitching dual between Dominguez and NNU's Abigail Watkins would ensue over the opening two innings before Northwest Nazarene struck first in the top of the third inning via a single through the left side by Day before Paschal brought home Day on a WOU error to put the Crusaders ahead early, 2-0.

Western Oregon would answer quickly in the bottom of the third inning, as Evola ripped a bases-loaded single off Watkins' thigh that allowed sophomore Destiny Kuehl to score before Knowles ripped a two-run double to left center that scored Gardner and Alfonso to put the Wolves ahead by the score of 3-2.

One inning later, Gardner would direct a double down the right field line with the bases loaded that scored Radziuk and fellow freshman Zoe Clark before Evola's single down the left field line scored Gardner and was followed with Alfonso coming home on a NNU error that pushed the Wolves' lead to five runs (7-2).

In the top of the sixth inning, Pesek would belt her second home run of the day via a solo shot over the center field fence that brought Northwest Nazarene back within four runs (7-3).

Western Oregon would cap its scoring in the bottom of the sixth inning when sophomore Lexi Jennings reached on a fielder's choice with runners on first and third allowing Evola to score the game's final run, as the Wolves earned the sweep with an 8-3 victory.

Evola led WOU's offense with her aforementioned 4-for-4 performance with a pair of RBI and a run scored, while Gardner was 3-for-4 and five other Wolves added a hit each. Dominguez would post Western Oregon's second straight complete game allowing three runs (two earned) on nine hits over 7.0 innings of work with one strikeout.

In talking about Evola's offensive performance, Sargent said, "She is one of the top players in our conference, I think. In my book, she is one of the best players that I have coached. She does a great job and puts the ball in play when she needs to. She does not talk a lot, but her actions speak for her and she does a great job."

NNU would get two hits each from Paschal, Carlton, and Day, while Watkins went the opening 3.0 innings allowing seven runs (six earned) on eight hits before turning the ball over to Taylor Crabb for the game's final 3.0 innings.

These same two teams will close out this weekend's four-game series tomorrow – Saturday, March 7 – with an early afternoon double header beginning at noon on the WOU Softball Field in Monmouth.