Monday, March 19, 2018

PORTLAND, Ore. –  Playing its best softball just two weeks into conference play, Central Washington has taken the GNAC by storm after winning its last nine games. In its most recent action last weekend in the Willamette Valley, the Wildcats picked up three convincing wins to earn this week’s Red Lion/GNAC Team of the Week honor.

Picked by conference coaches as this year’s GNAC preseason favorite, Central Washington has opened up the 2018 campaign on fire. The Wildcats enter the week with seven straight conference victories and sit atop the standings at 13-4, 7-0 GNAC. They picked up 3-0 and 4-0 wins at Concordia on Saturday before taking a 7-1 win over Western Oregon on Sunday. The second game of that doubleheader was halted in the second inning due to rain.

Central Washington also swept the weekly conference softball honors as sophomore Savannah Egbert was named the GNAC Softball Player of the Week while freshman Lexie Strasser was named the GNAC Softball Pitcher of the week. Egbert batted .545 in the three games and went 2 for 4 in both wins at Concordia before batting 2 for 3 with three runs batted in on Sunday.

Earning two wins in three appearances, Strasser allowed just one run on nine hits and struck out six. She threw a complete-game two-hitter in Saturday’s opening 3-0 win and allowed one run on six hits and struck out three on Sunday.

Central Washington’s last loss came in a 6-2 decision to Hawaii Pacific on Feb. 17. During the nine-game win streak, the Wildcats have outscored teams 61-16 and lead the GNAC in batting percentage (.333), on-base percentage (.402), stolen bases (28), earned run average (3.30), opponent batting average (.271) and home runs allowed (4). Egbert is second in the GNAC with a .509 batting average while junior Kayla Smith ranks third in the league with a 2.97 earned run average to go along with 19 strikeouts.

The Wildcats head down to California on Wednesday to take on Stanislaus State and Cal Baptist in non-conference action. They will also be one of eight GNAC teams to play in the Tournament of Champions, hosted by the City of Turlock, this weekend California.