Box Score, Gm. 1
Box Score, Gm. 2
FOREST GROVE – You knew there were going to be tears. On an emotional day when Pacific fans and coaches said farewell to four longtime senior softball contributors, there were tears of frustration early, of sentiment in the middle, then a joyful release at the end of a long afternoon at Sherman/Larkins Stadium.
The Boxers dropped game one of their doubleheader 3-2 to Lewis & Clark, then bounced back after a long intermission ceremony to blank the Pioneers 7-0 in the finale. The Boxers, now 9-17 in Northwest Conference play and 11-23 overall, wrap up their season at Lewis & Clark (3-23, 5-31) with a Sunday doubleheader.
The Pioneers outhit the Boxers 9-7 in the first game, but it wasn't so much the two extra hits that hurt Pacific, but where two of them landed. Already leading 1-0 after three hits in the first inning, Lewis & Clark leadoff hitter Jet'aime Mullins led off the third inning with a solo home run into the netting in left field, her fourth of the season. Moriah Lane followed suit in the fifth, blasting a 3-2
Chelsey Chamberlain (Sr., Grants Pass, Ore.) pitch over the wall in right field to lead off the frame with her team-leading sixth jack of the season.
The Boxers appeared to be pressing at the plate much of the day in front of the largest home crowd of the season. Lewis & Clark pitcher Madison Hollenbeck ended the first and second innings with strikeouts leaving runners in scoring position, fanning two batters in three of the first four innings of the game.
The Boxers began a comeback by manufacturing a run in the fifth inning.
Kaylene Sudbeck (Fr., Caldwell, Idaho) led off with a bunt single, stole second, then scored on a 2-out hit-and-run when
Jenna Stevens (So., Medford, Ore.) punched a ground ball through the hole on the right side for an RBI single.
In the sixth,
Jordan Mittelsdorf (Sr., Boardman, Ore.) belted a one-out double to the wall in right center. After an
Ashley Billingsley (Fr., Gresham, Ore.) single put runners at first and third,
Kiera Melton (Fr., Pleasanton, Calif.) hit a grounder to third. Pinch runner
Randee Layosa (So., Lihue, Hawaii) held close to the bag then broke for home on the throw to first, sliding around the tag of catcher Caitlin McCormick on the return throw. Billingsley was able to make her way to third with heads-up baserunning, but Hollenbeck again got out of the jam with a strikeout, fanning Sudbeck to strand the tying run 90 feet away.
In the seventh inning
Becca Moen (So., Gresham, Ore.) drew a one-out walk, followed by Stevens' infield hit. With the tying run in scoring position and the winning run on base, Chamberlain hit a high fly ball to center field deep enough to move Moen to third, but
Lauren Tuey' (Sr., Redlands, Calif.) popped out to shortstop Caroline DeVincenzi to end game, giving the young Pioneers only their fifth win of the season, but second straight and third in the last five games.
Billingsley went 3 for 3 for the Boxers, but the middle of the order struggled, as Chamberlain, Tuey and Mittelsdorf went a combined 1 for 10. Batting leadoff in game one, Moen reached base twice on walks and number two batter Stevens went 2 for 4, but neither was able to score.
Lane, Mullins and Kelsey Buck led the way with two hits each for the Pios, with Lane driving in two runs. Hollenbeck (3-16) notched her 10th complete game of the season, striking out eight and walking three. Chamberlain (5-8) took the loss, going 6 1/3 innings, allowing all nine hits with six strikeouts and one walk.
Chloe Hanson (Fr., Trail, Ore.) came on with runners on first and second in the sixth inning to get the final two outs for the Boxers.
The resurgent Hanson, limited by back trouble all year but buoyed by warm weather the last two weekends, returned to the circle in game two. The rookie righthander pitched 4 1/3 innings of three-hit shutout ball, but ran into deep trouble in the fifth. After Caitlin Basilio singled up the middle, Hanson walked Taylor Gatti and hit Mullins to load the bases. With Pacific leading 4-0, pinch hitter McCormick stepped to the plate representing the tying run. Chamberlain returned to the pitching circle in relief of Hanson and McCormick sent her first pitch on a line that appeared bound for left field. Stevens made a diving backhand catch deep in the hole at short then, from her knees, tossed to
Kaitlyn Shikada at third to double off Basilio in what was unquestionably the defensive highlight of Pacific's 2012 home campaign.
Chamberlain retired the final six batters in a row, but put a cap on her Boxer home career in appropriate fashion in the bottom of the sixth inning. Pacific's career home run leader blasted her seventh homer of the season and 46th career big fly over the wall in center field, a two-run bomb to cap a three-run frame to put the game away.
The Boxers took advantage of two walks and two errant throws by Lewis & Clark catcher Lauren Lovato to put four runs on the board in the third inning. After back-to-back walks to Moen and Chamberlain, Tuey scorched a Natalie Rose full count pitch into the left center field gap for a 2-RBI double. Mittelsdorf followed with a dribbler in front of the plate. Lovato pounced on it, but her throw to first hit Mittelsdorf in the back as the Boxer catcher awkwardly tripped over the bag and went down in a heap. Tuey scored on the play to make it 3-0 Pacific. Pinch-running for Mittelsdorf, Jenny Yano (Fr., Ontario, Ore.) stole second and third, scoring when Lovato's throw bounced into left field.
The Boxers collected only three hits in the game, but all went for extra bases. Moen doubled and scored in front of Chamberlain's sixth-inning round tripper, finishing 1 for 3 with a pair of runs scored. Chamberlain was officially 1 for 1 after walking three times.
Hanson (6-6) got the win in the combined shutout, striking out three with two walks. Chamberlain recorded her second save of the year with 2 1/3 innings of perfect relief. Rose surrendered just one hit in her three innings of work, for Lewis & Clark, but four bases on balls were costly. Two of the four runs allowed were earned and she struck out one batter. Hallie Knife pitched the final three innings for the Pios.
Boxer seniors
Ashley Billingsley,
Lauren Tuey,
Chelsey Chamberlain and
Jordan Mittelsdorf were honored in a ceremony between games. All four have achieved all-conference honors during their four-year Boxer careers with Chamberlain and Billingsley trying for their fourth All-NWC honors this year.
