Thursday, May 20, 2021

NAMPA, Idaho – What started as a pitchers’ duel quickly turned into a six-run victory for top-seeded Northwest Nazarene as the Nighthawks fended off No. 2 seeded Central Washington in the opening game of the 2021 GNAC Baseball Championships on Thursday in Nampa, Idaho.

Northwest Nazarene freshman Kyle Ethridge had another stellar outing, holding the Wildcats scoreless through the first three innings. The southpaw tossed seven innings to improve to 6-1 on the season, allowing two earned runs on three hits with two walks and seven strikeouts.

Ethridge’s counterpart, Central Washington senior lefty Dillon Larsen, took the loss after allowing six runs, just two earned, on six hits while walking one and striking out 10. Larsen and Ethridge entered the game tied for the conference lead with 67 strikeouts.

The Nighthawks got to Larsen early with a pair of runs in the second. Senior catcher Ben Johnson singled up the middle and then scored on a two-run home run to right-center field off the bat of senior first baseman John Gonzalez. It was Gonzalez’s team-leading 13th homer of the season.

Central Washington responded in the fourth inning with freshman catcher Austin Ohland sending a ball over the wall in straight-away center field to put the Wildcats on the board. Ethridge retired the next three batters to limit the damage. The Nighthawks punched back in the bottom half of the inning as junior Alex Salsman singled to left to score freshman Grant Kerry from third.

The Wildcats’ second run came in the fifth inning off of a sacrifice fly to center field by junior Michael Copeland. Copeland went 1 for 2 with the sacrifice fly and a hit by pitch.

Gonzalez went 2 for 4 in the game with two runs scored and three RBI. He drove in a run on an infield single in the sixth inning and then came around to score on a two-run single up the middle by freshman shortstop Walker Moore. Moore went 3 for 4 with a run scored and two RBI.

The Nighthawks plated two more insurance runs in the eighth inning. Freshman second baseman Kyle Payne was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and then senior third baseman Shawn Grandmont reached on a fielder’s choice to cash in another run.

Senior Blake McFadden took over for Ethridge in the eighth and shut the door on the Wildcats. He threw two scoreless innings, allowing two hits while striking out three to secure the victory.

Northwest Nazarene is one win away from winning its second GNAC Championships title and its first in five years. Central Washington will need to win twice on Friday to claim its first title since 2014.

First pitch for game two of the best-of-three series is scheduled for Friday at noon. The third game, if necessary, will start 30 minutes after the conclusion of game two. The winner will earn the GNAC's automatic berth to the NCAA Championships.