NWC Softball Tournament WebsiteFOREST GROVE – After an exciting 11-2 run to finish the season, the Boxers have grabbed the No. 2 seed in the Northwest Conference Tournament, which will be held in McMinnville's Del Smith Stadium on Friday and Saturday.
The double elimination tournament will start Friday with No. 1 seed Linfield playing No. 4 seed Willamette in game one and Pacific and No. 3 seed Whitworth playing in game two. The losers of game one and two will play in game three, with the loser being eliminated. Game four will be played between the winners of games one and two.
The Boxers will face Whitworth in the first round of the tournament. The Boxers have been the Pirates' kryptonite this entire season. In the NWC, Whitworth finished 18-10, with four of those losses coming at the hands of the Boxers.
The other round will be played between Linfield and Willamette. Linfield swept the season-series against the Boxers, but the Boxers still played the Wildcats tough. The Mar. 12 double header in McMinnville had the Boxers fall 3-2 and 5-4 in eight innings.
The Bearcats have limped into the NWC Tournament, going 3-8 in their last 11 games, but were able to best the Boxers three of four times in their series. In the three losses, the Boxers had trouble getting their offense into a rhythm.
The Boxers are on a hot streak as good as any going into the NWC Tournament.
Rachel Roberts (So., Oregon City, Ore.) has 53 hits, a batting average of .473 and 45 stolen bases, all numbers that lead the NWC. Her stolen base total is also the top in the NCAA Division III.
Kylee Oshiro (Jr., Aiea, Hawaii) has a .444 batting average and 41 RBIs, both second in the NWC.
Becca Moen (Sr., Gresham, Ore.) has a conference leading 39 runs and a .390 batting average, which is eighth in the NWC.
All three of the Boxers' pitchers are ranked in the top 20 of the NWC in earned run average.
Sara Aasness (Sr., Kirkland, Wash.) leads the trio with a 3.20 ERA in 109.1 innings. Aasness has won the NWC Pitching Student-Athlete of the Week each of the last two weeks.
About the Opponents:
NO. 1 SEED LINFIELDThe Wildcats sat atop the Northwest Conference the entire season. The defending NWC champions, Linfield finished the regular season with a 31-7, 25-3 NWC record and a No. 6 ranking in the NFCA Division III Top-25 poll.
The Wildcats have a pair of senior batters who have 40-plus hits. Katy Brosig finished the regular season with 51 hits, a .440 batting average, 28 RBIs and 34 runs. She had three hits and three runs in the Wildcats' 11-2 win over Texas-Tyler on Mar. 21. Ashley Garcia has 48 hits, a .417 average, and 19 runs. Her 43 RBIs is most in the NWC.
Linfield also has a duo of strong senior pitchers that are No. 1 and No. 2 in the conference in ERA. Karina Paavola finished the season with a 17-3 record and a 1.26 ERA. In 111 innings, Paavola had a conference best 142 strikeouts, 52 hits, 24 runs, 20 earned and 25 walks. In the Wildcats' 10-inning 1-0 win over George Fox on March 16, Paavola only allowed two hits and no runs.
Shelby VandeBergh is also a great pitcher for Linfield. She finished the regular season with a 10-2 record and a 1.53 ERA in 87 innings. She allowed 68 hits, 26 runs, 19 earned and 18 walks with 63 strikeouts.
NO. 3 SEED WHITWORTH PIRATESThe Boxers will face the Pirates in the opening round. The Pirates, 26-14, 18-10 NWC, dropped all four regular season games to the Boxers this year. Taylor Gilbert leads Whitworth with 37 hits, a .394 batting average, 25 RBIs and 17 runs. She had three hits and three RBIs on Jan. 31 in a 9-1 stomping of the University of La Verne.
Shannon Wessel is also a top slugger for the Pirates. The freshman has 39 hits, a .394 average, 21 RBIs and 26 runs on the season. Wessel had three hits and three runs in the nightcap of the Mar. 30 double-header against George Fox when the Pirates won 10-4. Whitworth's Julia Johnson has 31 hits, 39 RBIs and an NWC-leading nine home runs this season.
The Pirates top pitcher is Madi Perez. Another freshman, Perez pitched 106 innings and finished with a 14-5 record. She has a 1.84 ERA while allowing 81 hits, 42 runs, 28 earned, and 60 strikeouts. During the first game of the Mar. 30 doubleheader against George Fox, Perez pitched seven innings, allowing only two hits and two walks in a 5-0 shutout of the Bruins.
NO. 4 SEED WILLAMETTE BEARCATSThe Bearcats snuck into the NWC Tournament after the Boxers beat George Fox three times this past weekend. They finished the season at 18-20, 14-14 NWC.
The Bearcats also have a duo of top sluggers they rely on to get hits. Heather Winslow leads the team with 48 hits and a .425 batting average. She also has 22 RBIs and 36 runs. On Mar. 8, she was dominant in a win over Pacific Lutheran when she had three hits and four RBIs.
Ashley Pender is right behind Winslow with 44 hits and a .358 average. She has a team high 33 RBIs and 23 runs of her own.
The Bearcats' top pitcher is Jade Smith. The freshman finished the 2014 season with a 12-6 record and a 1.92 ERA in 123.2 innings. She gave up 135 hits, 34 earned, a 59 runs. Smith also had 22 walks and 48 strikeouts on the year. On March 16, she held the Boxers to six hits and no runs in seven innings in a 5-0 shutout of Pacific.
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