SPOKANE, Wash. – Pacific held the lead in both contests, but Whitworth rallied late in both games of the doubleheader to earn the midweek sweep over the Boxers.
Pacific falls to 5-11 in Northwest Conference play (6-18 overall) and now sit in seventh place in the NWC standings.
Rylee Patton (Senior/Eastvale, CA) was 5-for-8 in her fantastic day at the plate. The senior also pitched six complete innings in game one, allowing five earned runs on 10 hits.
MiKaila Neilson (Junior/Frenchtown, MT) drove in a couple runs while going 2-for-3 in the first game.
Sydney Rusin (Junior/Portland, OR) banged out a couple hits in the second half of the twin bill, racking up two RBI.
Game 1
The Pirates took advantage of a leadoff triple to get on the board in their first turn at the plate.
After being held to just one hit by Whitworth's Corinne Vasiloff in the series opener, the Boxers made some adjustments to find some success early in third game of the series. Pacific answered back in the second inning when Neilson launched a triple off the right-field wall to score
Gillian Venditti (Freshman/Caldwell, ID) from first base. The Boxers would take the lead when
Nicole Leadley (Junior/Bothell, WA) grounded to shortstop, allowing Neilson to trot home.
The Pacific lead would be short-lived as Pirates' centerfielder Rylee Genter hit a three-run shot to restore her team's advantage.
The Boxers regained a foothold in the contest when Samantha Pettit (Junior/Tigard, OR) led off the top half of the third with a base hit before Patton ripped a double to right, scoring the second baseman from first. Rusin and Neilson made it four straight hits in the inning with back-to-back knocks, the latter bringing Patton across to tie things up at 4-4.
Two hits and a sacrifice fly put the hosts out in front after three innings but the back-and-forth contest would take another twist.
Ashley Gamble (Freshman/Paia, HI) stepped to the plate in her pinch-hit opportunity and she would make the most of it, blasting the first home run of her career to equalize yet again.
The Pirates scratched a run in the bottom of the fourth and the Pacific bats would go silent for the remainder of the contest. The hosts would escape with the 6-5 victory to clinch the series.
Game 2
Rusin was in the circle to start the series finale and collected the two outs in the opening inning but Whitworth rallied for three straight hits to take an early lead.
Pacific replied with three four runs in the third to take a commanding lead. Patton delivered her fourth hit of the day and Rusin doubled home two runs, giving her team the edge. Gamble made it a three-run advantage when she came through with another big swing, smashing a two-bagger to right field to bring Rusin to home plate.
Whitworth broke things open in the home half of the third, scoring seven runs to make the score 8-4. After a three-run fifth inning, the Pirates would hold on to take the final game of the series, clinching the sweep.
Up Next
The Boxers return to Sherman/Larkins Stadium on Mar. 27 to host Whittier College for a doubleheader starting at 10:30 a.m.
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