By: Burke De Boer Sports Editor
After splitting their games over the break, Wolves baseball sits atop the GNAC standings. Games in Ravendale and Nampa saw Western Oregon go 3-3 to maintain a 11-5 conference record.
The Wolves played a doubleheader against Saint Martin’s on March 25, winning the first game, 8-1, before falling 1-2 in extra innings.
Junior right handed pitcher Brady Miller started the first of the two games and pitched seven shutout innings.
While Miller locked down Saint Martin’s batters, striking out five, Wolves batters opened up scoring in a big way; third baseman Nyles Nygaard and shortstop Garrett Anderson both scored two runs, while catcher Boog Leach picked up three RBIs.
The second game of the day was much more defensive, as the teams were able to only pick up one run a piece before sending the game into extra innings. First-year pitcher Connor McCord struck out four, giving up only one unearned run in what was declared a no-decision start.
Second baseman Jay Leverett put up an RBI single to bat in first baseman Koty Fallon for the tying run in the fourth inning.
The Wolves traveled to Nampa, Idaho for a pair of doubleheaders the following weekend against Northwest Nazarene.
The first day of play saw the Wolves drop both games, losing 10-13 and 3-4, which allowed Northwest Nazarene to take over the top spot on the conference standings. They held this position only briefly, and Western was able to reclaim their place at the top with a pair of wins on April 1.
11 runs in the second inning supercharged the Wolves to a 15-1 victory in the first game. The second game again went into extra innings, but the Wolves fared better this time to win 9-7.
In his start on April 1, Miller was able to strike out five in six scoreless innings.
The 11-run second inning saw Boog Leach get batted in by Jay Leverett to open scoring. Northwest Nazarene couldn’t slow down the offensive effort, and Leach was able to score a second run in the same inning.
The second game went to 10 innings before Leverett was hit by a pitch. Designated hitter Joey Crunkilton hit a homerun for his second run and third RBI of the night, sealing the game for the Wolves.
Contact the author at journalsports@wou.edu
