Simson Garcia | Sports Editor
Softball season closed for Western on May 4 with a loss to Simon Fraser, 6-3. The loss was their second in the GNAC tournament, after losing first to Northwest Nazarene, 3-0, and technically eliminating the Wolves. However, Western rekindled their championship hopes in the second game by defeating Central Washington, 4-2.
The first two-game set was played from May 3-4, and the Central Washington Wildcats and Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks took to the mound with Western.
In the first match up, against the Nighthawks, Western batters faced a premier pitcher in the GNAC; Northwest’s Jordan Adams leads the conference in ERA and struck the Wolves out 13 times. Western found success in the first at-bat of the game off first-year outfielder Tyler Creach’s double. Ryanne Huffman, junior infielder, put herself and Creach in scoring position after stealing second, but three consecutive Wolf swing-and-misses afterwards ended the inning.
The Wolves never got close to scoring again and the ‘Hawks provided the only three runs in the game by the fourth inning.
Facing elimination in the loser’s bracket, and down 0-2 in the second game against Central Washington, Western found life in the sixth inning. Jenna Kelly, junior infielder, doubled two into home. Zoe Clark, senior outfielder, drew in two more scores with her home run for the 4-2 lead and saved their season.
The final elimination game pitted Western against Simon Fraser, with the winner advancing to the GNAC ship with Northwest Nazarene. An appearance in the championship would have been a repeat for the Wolves.
Deadlocked at 2-2 in the third, Simon Fraser jumped out to a 6-2 lead in fifth. Creach hit a home run in the sixth: her first collegiate homer, but the last for the Wolves.
Western finished the season out with a 28-25 record.
With only two seniors leaving, the experience next season may be a huge asset, especially with the return of Creach and Huffman, two players that were top ten in hits and stolen bases in the GNAC.
“During this last off season I worked on getting faster and will continue to do that during this off season,” said Huffman. Creach felt that her first homer culminated from her constant work ethic that she worked on all season and hopes to keep developing her hitting and speed.
“I think that for next season it’ll be important to utilize more of my short game ability,” said Creach. “My speed is such a huge asset, so I’m looking forward to improving that area for next year.”
Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu
Photo by: wouwolves.com
