Wednesday, March 16, 2016

THIS WEEK'S GNAC SOFTBALL PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
PLAYER
Meghan Luebbert, Concordia
OF • 5-4 •  Junior • Sandy, Ore.

Luebbert won her second straight award by going 9 for 16 with five runs and eight RBI. She had three hits in both games against Northwest Nazarene on Friday, including a run, three RBI and a pair of doubles. She also had two hits, two RBI and three runs in the second game of their Tuesday doubleheader sweep of Carroll, which included a game-winning two-out, two-run homer in the nightcap.

Also Nominated: Cori Gammon (Montana State Billings), Lily Paschal (Northwest Nazarene).

PITCHER
Jessica Lambourn, Concordia
P • 6-0 • Freshman  • Mulilteo, Wash.

Lambourn went 3-0 for Concordia, allowing 1 run on 19 hits in 15.1 innings of work. She picked up both wins in Tuesday’s doubleheader with Carroll, allowing five hits in four innings in the opener and allowing one run on seven hits in the nightcap. Lambourn then allowed seven hits while going the distance in the Cavs’ 7-0 shutout of Northwest Nazarene.

Also Nominated: Brooke Bonsen (Northwest Nazarene), Cameron Cassinelli (Montana State Billings).

AROUND THE GNAC
FOOLS IN THE RAIN: The real winner in GNAC softball last week was Mother Nature. Out of 11 scheduled softball doubleheaders for conference teams, six were postponed due to weather. That included rain in western Oregon and western Washington and snow in central Washington. A seventh doubleheader between Montana State Billings and Division I (and former GNAC member) Seattle was shorted after five innings of the first game due to rain.All four GNAC doubleheaders have been rescheduled, beginning with Western Washington’s doubleheader at Saint Martin’s on Thursday.

TURF WARS: Thanks to their turf field at Hilken Community Stadium, Concordia received the benefit of playing four of their six weekend games. And the Cavaliers benefited by moving into the lead in the GNAC standings in their first season in the league.

The Cavaliers opened with a non-conference doubleheader sweep of Carroll (Mont.) on Tuesday. Concordia won the opener 6-0 behind a nine-hit shutout performance by Jessica Lambourn and Mattie Boucher. The Cavaliers rallied from down 8-3 after four innings to win the nightcap, topped by a game-winning two-out, two-run homer by Meghan Luebbert.

Friday’s games were moved from Hilken to Wilsonville High School, south of Portland, where the Cavaliers secured a split with Northwest Nazarene. The Crusaders opened up a tied game by scoring four runs in the sixth and two in the seventh to take the 11-8 win. Lubbert went 3 for 5 with two RBI to lead the Cavaliers. Concordia turned the tables in the nightcap behind a complete-game seven-hitter by Lambourn and another three-hit performance by Luebbert for the 7-0 shutout.

The performances allowed Concordia to sweep the GNAC Player of the Week honors. Luebbert earned the Player of the Week award for the second straight week, going 9 for 16 with five runs and eight RBI in the four games. Lambourn earned the Pitcher of the Week honor after going 3-0 in the four games, allowing one run on 19 hits in 15.1 innings of work.

NORTHERN STINGER: The good news for Montana State Billings is that they were able to get three games in on their trip last week to the western valleys. But that’s all they got as rain washed out both of their scheduled GNAC doubleheaders at Western Oregon and Concordia.

What games they did get in, though, the Yellowjackets did well. The trip opened on Tuesday with a sweep of games at NAIA for British Columbia. Montana State Billings won the opener 9-5 thanks to a four-run first inning and five runs over the final four innings. Heather Tracy led MSUB by going 3 for 3 with a double and three runs. The Yellowjackets then scored seven runs in the final four innings to collect a 9-6 victory. Cameron Cassinelli led MSUB by going 2 for 4 with a run, a triple and three RBI.

On Wednesday, Montana State Billings got five innings into their doubleheader with Division I Seattle before seeing game end 4-2 due to rain. By that point, the Yellowjackets had battled back from a 3-0 deficit by scoring two runs in the fourth. Cori Hammon went 2 for 3 to lead Billings.

The forecast bodes well for Montana State Billings as they are scheduled to host Saint Martin’s in the quest for their first GNAC win of the season. Sun is expected both days with a high of 68 forecast for Sunday. The games will be Montana State Billings’ first home contests of the season.

SURGING: After opening the GNAC season by losing three games to Western Washington, Simon Fraser has surged to win seven straight games and enters the week second in the GNAC at 7-3.

The Clan picked up both wins in their doubleheader on Saturday at Central Washington, the only other GNAC doubleheader to be played over the weekend. Simon Fraser bolted out to an 8-4 lead after two innings and then held off a spirited Wildcats’ rally for the win. Six Simon Fraser hitters finished with two hits, led by Nicole Ratel’s 2 for 3 with a home run, two runs and three RBI.

The storyline was much the same in the nightcap. The Clan started with a 6-0 lead after two innings, only to see Central Washington rally to come within one run in the 7-6 victory. Taylor Lundrigan led Simon Fraser by going 3 for 5 with a double, two runs and a RBI.

NO PLACE LIKE HOME?: Two GNAC teams are still awaiting their first home games of the season. Montana State Billings will play thier first home games this weekend, hosting Saint Martin’s for four home games. Western Oregon have seen six home dates with Saint Martin’s and Montana State Billings scrubbed due to rain. They are not scheduled to play in Monmouth until Mar. 25. Saint Martin’s has played just two home games with four others rained out. They return to play in Lacey on Thursday in a rescheduled dobuleheader against Western Washington.

WESTERN WASHINGTON PICKED TO WIN IN PRESEASON POLL: A year after just missing a conference tournament title and a trip to the NCAA Tournament, coaches have picked Western Washington to reach the pinnacle in the 2016 Great Northwest Athletic Conference’s Preseason Softball Coaches Poll.

The Vikings received five of eight first place votes, earning 61 points in the poll. Western Washington is clear and away the favorite over defending GNAC regular season champion Saint Martin’s, picked to finish second with 47 points. Western Oregon was picked third, close behind Saint Martin’s with 43 points.

Montana State Billings, who surprised the conference with a spirited run to the GNAC Tournament championship and their first trip to the NCAA Division II Tournament since 2012, was picked to finish fourth with 37 points. Central Washington finished one point behind, picked fifth with 36 points. The Wildcats were followed by GNAC newcomer Concordia (33 pts.), Simon Fraser (17 pts.) and Northwest Nazarene (14 pts.).