PORTLAND, Ore. - Pitchers Amanda Todd of Montana State Billings and Maria Gau of Central Washington have been selected GNAC Red Lion Softball Pitchers of the Week.

 

Todd tossed a pair of one-hitters last weekend, while Gau won four games, throwing a pair of shutouts.

 

They are among 10 players to earn Red Lion GNAC Player of the Week honors for the Week of April 7-13.

 

Here is a recap of the Red Lion honorees:

 

Softball: Player – Jill McDaniels, Central Washington (2B, 5-8, Sr., Walla Walla, WA) had 10 hits in 18 at bats, including a double and two home runs leading the Wildcats to six consecutive victories.  Among her hits was a seventh-inning single to set up a game-winning two-run base hit in Wednesday’s 5-4 win over Simon Fraser.  On Saturday she had three hits and four RBI including a second-inning two-run home run in a 8-0 win over Western Oregon.  Then on Sunday, she snapped a 1-1 tie in the sixth inning of the nightcap with a RBI single.  The RBI was her eighth of the week.  Pitcher – Maria Gau, Central Washington (5-7, Sr., Woodinville, WA) and Amanda Todd, MSU Billings (5-5, Sr. Billings, MT – Skyview) .... Gau won four games and allowed just two earned runs.  In 22 innings, she gave up 14 hits and four runs.  She walked six and fanned 16 increasing her league-leading total to 114.  Among her victories were shutouts of Simon Fraser (3-0) and Western Oregon (8-0) ... Todd pitched back-to-back one-hitters against Northwest Nazarene, blanking the Crusaders 8-0 Friday.  On Saturday, she took a no-hitter and a 6-0 lead into the seventh before NNU took advantage of two errors to score four runs on just one hit finally getting the final out on her 11th strikeout of the game.  In the two contests, she walked seven and struck out 17.

 

Honorable Mention – Justine Callen, Northwest Nazarene (OF, 5-9, So., Oregon City, OR – Clackamas CC); Brittney Sanders, MSU Billings (C, 5-6, Jr.,  Kelso, WA); Jourdan Williams, Western Oregon (3B, 5-8, Jr., McMinnville, OR); Autumn Isaacson, Western Washington (OF, 5-5, Jr., Lake Stevens, WA – Bellevue CC).

 

Baseball: Player - Ethan Sterkel, Central Washington (RF, 6-2, Sr., Ellensburg, WA) went 11-for-16 with two doubles and a home run to lead the Wildcats to a 3-1 series victory over Northwest Nazarene. Sterkel scored three runs and tallied 16 total bases, and didn’t strike out in 17 plate appearances. The right fielder was instrumental in the Wildcats’ first win of the week, batting 4-for-4 and driving in three runs. Sterkel’s eighth inning solo home run brought CWU within a run at 6-5, and his RBI double in the ninth pushed the Wildcats ahead 8-7 in the eventual 10-7 triumph. Sterkel went 3-for-5 in CWU’s 6-5 win in Game 3, and scored the first run in the Wildcats’ series-clinching 6-1 win in Game 4. Sterkel played error free defense in right field, handling all six of his chances without incident. Sterkel’s effort helped CWU move into sole possession of second place in the GNAC standings and keep pace with Western Oregon, which also went 3-1 on the weekend. Pitcher – Aaron Vaughn, Northwest Nazarene (RHP, R-R, 5-11, Sr., Tucson, AZ – Pusch Ridge Christian Academy) twirled a seven-inning complete game shutout, propelling the Crusaders to their lone victory of the week in a 7-0 win over CWU. Vaughn struck out eight batters and allowed just three hits against two walks. The senior right hander improved to 8-1 on the season and lowered his GNAC second-best ERA to 2.25. Vaughn didn’t allow a base hit until the fourth inning, and three times pitched out of a jam after allowing the leadoff runner to reach base. Vaughn ended his sixth complete game in emphatic fashion, allowing a base hit in the top of the seventh before striking out the next three batters in succession to finish the game. Vaughn’s 58 strikeouts are the second-most in the conference, and his eight wins are a GNAC high.