April 13, 2008

Pacific Lutheran Splits Softball Doubleheader With Willamette

Game One
Game Two

Lisa Gilbert

Rachel Wheeler-Hoyt

PARKLAND, Wash. – Willamette rode the pitching of Nikki Franchi to an 8-1 first game win and Pacific Lutheran collected 13 hits in a 12-4 five-inning victory in the second contest as the teams split a Northwest Conference softball doubleheader played Sunday at the PLU softball field.

Franchi improved her season record to 13-2 by limiting the Lutes to one run on seven hits in the opener. Franchi did walk five batters, however, and escaped trouble on several occasions, including two times when PLU left the bases loaded. The Lutes ended up stranding a total of 12 runners on the base paths.

Willamette pounced on PLU starter Hadley Schmitt early in the opening game, getting three runs in the first inning on Franchi’s run-scoring single and a two-run homer by LaShawna Holcomb. The Lutes scored their only run in the bottom of the first, loading the bases on consecutive singles by Heather Walling, Caitlin Brown and Carly Starke before Rachel Wheeler-Hoyt drew a walk. Franchi recorded the final three outs of the inning on two pop ups and a strikeout to get out of that jam.

The Bearcats made it 5-1 in the second on Elizabeth Gilgan’s RBI double and a Marissa Richards’ run-scoring single, and they added two more in the third on a two-RBI base hit by Caitlin Waugh. Willamette finished the scoring in the sixth when Gilgan slugged a home run, her third hit of the game. Waugh added two hits as the Bearcats finished the game with 10 hits.

Caitlin Brown had a pair of singles to lead PLU’s offense in the opener.

After Franchi hit a first inning homer to give the visitors a 1-0 lead in the second game, the Lutes jumped all over Willamette starter Amy Valencia, scoring four times in the first inning, once in the second and four more in the third. Lisa Gilbert ripped a two-run double in the first and a Willamette error accounted for two more runs. In the second, Walling turned a line drive down the rightfield line into an inside-the-park home run.

Willamette got one back in the third on Franchi’s RBI single, but the Lutes made the score 9-2 with four runs in the bottom of the inning. Gilbert hit her second double of the game to drive in the first tally, and the second scored on a wild pitch by relief pitcher Debra Bohren. Vanessa Bryant and Brown both added run-scoring singles in the inning.

The Bearcats scored two runs in the top of the fourth on a run-scoring single by Cirbi Anthony and a PLU error.

The game ended on the eight-run rule when the Lutes scored three times in the bottom of the fifth inning. Walling and Brown reached on singles and Starke was hit by a pitch to load the bases, and Rachel-Wheeler Hoyt knocked in two with a double. Stephanie Mullen ended the game with a single through the middle, scoring Starke.

Walling had three hits while Brown, Wheeler-Hoyt and Bryant all had two hits for the Lutes. Wheeler-Hoyt improved her pitching record to 8-5, going all five innings and allowing four runs, three earned, on seven hits.

Franchi had two hits and two RBI to lead Willamette’s offense in the second game.

- PLU -