BELLINGHAM, Wash. – Western Oregon softball came out on top over Western Washington in a high-scoring battle on Sunday.
With the 11-8 win, the Wolves improved to 10-10 overall and 3-2 in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference, while the Vikings dropped to 11-12 overall and 6-7 in the conference.
The game consisted of a back-and-forth scoring contest, and although Western Oregon trailed going into the seventh inning, the Wolves tallied four runs to claim the victory.
Western Oregon outhit the Vikings, 13-9, where junior
Destiny Kuehl led the Wolves with three hits and two runs. Juniors
Ashlee Lynch and
Emma Alfonso each had two hits for the day, and Alfonso added two runs.
Senior
Alyson Boytz and junior
Sammi Cadwallader did the pitching work in the circle as Boytz served for the first 5.2 innings, and Cadwallader closed the game, taking the win. Boytz allowed all of Western Washington's hits and runs, yet she did strike out three batters.
The first run of the game came in the third inning as junior
Kelsie Gardner, who had doubled down the left field line, scored on a sacrifice fly. Freshman
Ryanne Huffman also scored off of a sacrifice fly in the inning.
Western Washington retaliated with four runs in the bottom of the third inning, but the Wolves came right back with two runs during the following inning. Kuehl tied up the game in one play as she homered and also brought junior
Ku'ulei Siolo home.
The Wolves gained a three-point lead in the sixth inning when Alfonso doubled to left field and came home after Siolo's single. Kuehl than blasted her second home run of the game, which also allowed Siolo's pinch runner, freshman
Jenna Kelly, to score.
Western Oregon couldn't celebrate yet as the Vikings produced another set of four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning for an 8-7 advantage.
Carrying the momentum from the sixth into the seventh inning, the Wolves regained the lead when Lynch homered and also brought junior
Mercedes Green's pinch runner, junior
Hailee Watilo, home. Next at bat, junior
Lexi Jennings singled and eventually scored when Kuehl doubled to center field. Alfonso also scored on Kuehl's double to cap off the win.
Up next, the Wolves will face Western Washington in Bellingham once again on Monday at 10 a.m.
