Wildcat outfielder Kacie Freudenberger makes contact with the ball Friday afternoon during win number two of a doubleheader against Northwestern Colorado Community College at Edmonds Sports Complex.
Scoring bursts in the late innings carried Western Nevada College’s softball team to a sweep of Colorado Northwestern, 8-0 and 11-3, Friday afternoon at Edmonds Sports Complex.
Western Nevada improved to 11-14 in Scenic West Athletic Conference play. The teams conclude the SWAC series today with another doubleheader starting at noon.
In the opener, WNC led 3-0 after four and then scored four in the fifth and one in the sixth to win via mercy rule. In the nightcap, Western snapped a 3-all tie with eight runs in the sixth, all scored with no outs.
“We have been really strong in the late innings,” WNC coach Leah Wentworth said. “We’ve been working on trying to have the same energy we show late in the game at the start of the game. We have a ton of fight in us. It doesn’t make any difference what the score is.”
The beneficiary of both outbursts was right-handed pitcher Kristina George, who threw a 1-hitter to win the opener and pitched 1.2 innings of relief in the nightcap.
Wentworth said the Wildcats have gotten a lot more out of George than expected at the start of the season.
“When the season started, we were looking at her as a closer,” Wentworth said. “She had a good mix of spin, speed and her delivery was a little jerky which could throw hitters off. As the season has gone along, she has gotten stronger and stronger with every outing. She has become our ace.
“We’ve never had a pitcher who could dominate like that. I think this was her third 1-hitter of the season.”
Colorado Northwestern’s only hit was in the second inning.
Melanie Mecham got the ball rolling with a solo homer in the first. She went 4-for-4 in the opener.
After single runs in the third and fourth to make it 3-0, WNC broke it open with four in the fifth. Jaussi had a double, while Mecham and Pam Sakuma had singles.
In the nightcap, Western scored twice in the second to break up a scoreless tie.
Nicole Lesniak, who started in the circle, singled. Sakuma also singled, driving in the run, Sakuma took second on a wild throw by the right fielder. Bailey Henderson reached on an error for the second run of the inning.
The Wildcats made it 3-0 in the third when Kacie Freudenberger walked and scored when Briauna Carter’s sacrifice bunt was thrown away. Carter was doubled off third on Lesniak’s line drive.
Dakota Robinson came on and worked out of a first and third situation, retiring two straight hitters.
Colorado Northwestern tied it with three in the top of the fifth.
Abigail Thompson singled and moved to third on Courtney David’s double to left-centerfield. Katie Mankau followed with a two-run check-swing bloop single to right to make it 3-2. Heather Garcia tied it with a drive off the fence in center which Sakuma misread. It was a catchable ball, according to Wentworth.
WNC exploded for eight runs without making an out to end the inning. Mecham drove in two runs, Jaussi drove in a run as did Freudenberger, Carter and George. Colorado made four errors in the inning to help the cause.
Mecham finished with three hits, Freudenberger, Sakuma and Jaussi had two each.