MONMOUTH, Ore. – A complete game performance by junior Alyson Boytz in the opener followed by 14 runs on 14 hits in the finale helped Western Oregon University's softball team complete a four-game weekend sweep of Northwest Nazarene University, 3-1 & 14-2 in five innings, in Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) play Saturday at the WOU Softball Field.

"Today's wins feel great to be 4-0 in conference is awesome," said Head Coach Lonny Sargent. "We were hoping for 3-1 or at least a split with (Northwest Nazarene), but to come away for four wins is incredible."

Four different Wolves' players registered three hits on the afternoon, including senior Amanda Evola, junior Brandy Knowles, sophomore Kelsie Gardner, and sophomore Destiny Kuehl. Three other WOU players – sophomore Elaine Sperry, sophomore Lexi Jennings, and freshman Zoe Clark – each registered two hits on the afternoon, as Jennings and Kuehl drove in a game-high four runs each.

Western Oregon (7-11, 4-0 GNAC) belted four home runs on the afternoon with two coming from Evola, as well as one each by Jennings and senior Jourdan Williams.

In the circle, Boytz went the distance in the opener allowing one earned run on six hits with five strikeouts. Williams went the first 4.0 innings in Game #2 allowing one earned run on just two hits before turning the ball over to sophomore Sammi Cadwallader for the final inning where she allowed an unearned run on one hit with two K's.

When asked about Boytz's pitching performance over the weekend and how much that helped the pitching staff, Sargent said, "It does a lot as she is a junior and we are looking to her as an upperclassman. Being new here and trying to learn the system and being able to come out and pitch two complete games is incredible. We need that from her. She is so stoic and has a demeanor out there that kids just get behind and they do not faulter even if she gives up the big hit."

Northwest Nazarene (2-13, 0-5 GNAC) was led offensively by Ali Schauer with a combined three hits, while Lily Paschal had one hit in each game for the Crusaders. Ashley Pesek would start both games going a combined 7.1 innings, as she allowed 11 runs (10 earned) with a combined eight strikeouts. In Game #2, Pesek would give way to Taylor Crabb for the final 2.2 innings as she allowed six earned runs on nine hits.

GAME #1 — WESTERN OREGON 3, NORTHWEST NAZARENE 1

In Saturday's opener, Northwest Nazarene would get on the board first on a RBI single up the middle by Brianna Kinghorn that scored Whitney Carlton before the Wolves quickly answered in the bottom of the first on Evola's first home run of the afternoon via a solo bomb over the center field fence that tied the game at 1-1.

Neither team would score again until the bottom of the fourth inning when Western Oregon when Williams reached on a fielding error before moving to second on a pass ball. After a Jennings walk and a single by Sperry that loaded the bases with one out, Kuehl singled down the left field line to score both Williams and Jennings with the eventual game-winning RBIs.

Northwest Nazarene had a pair of scoring opportunities in the top of the fifth and seventh innings, respectively, as the Crusaders stranded a runner at third in the fifth before lining into a game-ending double play with runners on first and second.

Knowles and Sperry each tallied two hits for the Wolves, while Kuehl drove in a pair of RBI in WOU's fourth straight victory.

For Northwest Nazarene, Kinghorn and Schauer each had two hits with Pesek going the distance allowing three runs (two earned) on eight hits with a game-high eight strikeouts.

GAME #2 — WESTERN OREGON 14, NORTHWEST NAZARENE 2 (5 INNINGS)

After registering a combined 16 hits in yesterday's double header against NNU, Western Oregon exploded for 14 runs on 14 hits in Saturday's finale that included three home runs by the Wolves.

The game would begin with a quick 1-2-3 inning for WOU in the top half of the first before Western Oregon took advantage of back-to-back walks with the bases loaded as well as a run-scoring double by Evola and a RBI single by Kuehl to pull ahead 4-0 after one inning.

After a bases loaded walk by NNU in the top half of the second inning pulled the Crusaders within three runs (4-1), Western Oregon would bat around for in consecutive innings as the Wolves scored six runs on five hits with Jennings hitting her first home run of the season via a grand slam that caused a pitching change for NNU. Two batters later, Kuehl would drive home her second run of the game on a ground out before Gardner doubled home sophomore Ku'ulei Siolo to extend the Wolves' lead to 10-1.

The third inning would begin with Evola slugging a solo home run over the center field fence before Knowles ripped a double to left field and Williams followed that up with a two-run home run over the right field fence that put Western Oregon ahead by 12 runs (13-1).

WOU would cap its scoring in the bottom of the fourth inning when Williams brought home Clark on a ground out after the freshman led off with a double to left center to start the Wolves' at-bat.

Northwest Nazarene would finally snap Western Oregon's streak of 10 unanswered runs with a single run in the top of the fifth inning when Paschal scored on a dropped fly by WOU that would cap the game's scoring with the Wolves coming away with the 14-2 mercy-rule victory in five innings.

Four Wolves – Gardner, Clark, Evola, and Kuehl – each had two hits in the game, while Jennings drove in four runs and Williams tallied three RBI.

For NNU, Pesek, Schauer, and Paschal were the only Crusaders with hits against the combo of Williams and Cadwallader.

When asked about his team's offensive output in Game #2, Sargent said, "The bats are starting to come alive. We knew that it was in them. I knew our kids could hit. It was just a matter of having that confidence and I think that they are starting to believe what we are telling them. Once they believing it, they can hit the ball really well."

Western Oregon will return to action on Tuesday, March 10, when they host a pair of non-conference games against Northwest Christian University beginning at 2 p.m. on the WOU Softball Field in Monmouth.

Sargent commented on the team's tough six-game stretch this week by saying, "I think that Northwest Christian is going to be tough and so we have to go into that trying to get two wins if we can. It is nice that it is Tuesday so that we have a few days to relax and get back on track before Western Washington and Simon Fraser next weekend."