FOREST GROVE, Ore. – It was a perfect start to Northwest Conference play for Pacific Softball as they took two games from Lewis & Clark on Tuesday evening at Sherman/Larkins Stadium. The Boxers won via the mercy rule in game one, taking that contest 15-3 before grinding out the 6-3 victory in game number two.
Pacific's bats came alive with 11 hits in the series opener.
Rylee Patton (Senior/Eastvale, CA) went 3-for-4 with five RBI. The senior showed her power at the plate, mashing a double and legging out a three-bagger. Patton also earned the win after tossing a complete game, allowing just three runs on five hits.
Annika McNeel (Senior/Beaverton, OR) drove in four runs in her 2-for-2 performance. She walked twice and scored three runs, accounting for seven of the Boxers' 15 runs.
In game two, Pacific scored twice in the first inning but went scoreless for the next four frames. Trailing by one run in the sixth, the Boxers rallied for four runs to regain the lead.
Elizabeth Young (Senior/Port Orchard, WA) enjoyed a 2-for-2 game, driving in a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth.
Nicole Leadley (Junior/Bothell, WA) racked up two knocks while picking up an RBI.
Game 1
Starting on Feb. 26, the Boxers exploded for five runs in their first turn at the plate, setting the tone for their impressive offensive display. McNeel walked to lead off the ballgame before Samantha Pettit (Junior/Tigard, OR) laid down a bunt for a hit to keep the line moving. Patton stepped to the plated and slapped a double in the gap to bring both runners home. Young and Leadley made it three consecutive doubles for Pacific, and the hosts would take a 5-0 lead in to the second inning.
In the third inning,
Sydney Rusin (Junior/Portland, OR) ripped a double and later scored on a passed ball. After Leadley and Young reached base, McNeel smacked her second hit of the game to bring them around to score. With the bases loaded, Patton launched a triple to centerfield to clear the bases, making the score 11-1 at the end of the third.
Lewis & Clark pushed two runs across in the top of the fourth before play was halted due to some heavy rain in the Forest Grove area. Play would resume 10 days later with runners on second and third for the Pioneers. The Boxers managed to get out of the jam when
MiKaila Neilson (Junior/Frenchtown, MT) snagged a line drive and stepped on third base to double up the runner.
Four more runs for Pacific would put the game out of reach and allowed them to end the game after five innings as they put the mercy rule into effect.
Game 2
Patton was in the circle for game two and navigated her way out of a bases loaded situation in the top of the first. Pacific jumped out to an early lead in the bottom half of the inning when Petitt scored after leading things off with a walk. Leadley singled to bring another run to the plate, extending the lead to 2-0.
Both teams would go scoreless over the next three frames before the Pioneers tied things up in the top of the fifth. Lewis & Clark's Jules Henderson hit a solo shot in the top of sixth to give her team the lead.
In the bottom half of the sixth, the Boxers answered with a four spot to make the score 6-3.
Carli Zanassi (Freshman/Bothell, WA) led off the inning with an infield hit and
Michelle Winfield (Junior/Beaverton, OR) followed by laying down a perfectly-placed bunt to force an errant throw from the L&C catcher.
Pettit would score Zanassi with a sacrifice fly and Patton gave Pacific the lead with her fourth hit of the night. Young delivered another huge swing when her blooper landed in the outfield to plate two more runs.
Rusin came in to pitch the top of the seventh and shutout the Pioneers to earn the save, clinching the perfect start to conference play.
Up Next
The Boxers conclude the series tomorrow night with another doubleheader against Lewis & Clark. First pitch scheduled for 4:30 p.m.
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