Thursday, February 24, 2022

PORTLAND, Ore. – After two years and 712 days between games, Simon Fraser couldn’t be happier to be back.

Simon Fraser returned to the diamond at the Cactus Classic in Tucson last week. While the outcomes were not what the team wanted, the fact they were back on the field made it worthwhile.

The tournament started off with two wins on Friday, collecting a 7-3 victory over Eastern New Mexico and an 11-3, five-inning win over California (Pa.). Simon Fraser took a 6-2 loss to Colorado Christian and a 4-3 loss to Colorado Mesa on Saturday before closing the tournament with a 13-5 win over West New Mexico.

Simon Fraser closed the road trip with three losses at Cal State San Marcos on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Despite the long layoff between games, SFU came into the season primed to compete. Five batters are hitting over .300 through the team’s first eight games, led by sophomore Georgia Ogg, who is batting .409 with eight runs, three doubles and five RBI. Freshman Janique Balcaen is also hitting .409 with five runs, four doubles and four RBI.

When the 2020 season was halted by COVID-19, freshman pitcher Anissa Zacharczuk had taken the conference by storm as she opened her collegiate career with a 10-0 record. Zacharczuk made it 12 wins in a row to open the season, allowing one run on four hits in five innings in the win over Eastern New Mexico and allowing three runs on nine hits with four strikeouts in the win over California (Pa.).

The winning streak came to an end against Colorado Christian as Zacharczuk allowed four runs, three earned, on six hits. She will enter this weekend’s games against Central Washington and Saint Martin’s with a 3-3 record.

While Simon Fraser was just getting started, Montana State Billings continued to prime itself for conference play with four games in the great indoors. The Yellowjackets played at the Minot State Bubble Invite, scoring a 7-4 win over Mary and an 8-0 win over Minot State on Saturday. They took a pair of close losses on Sunday, 6-4 to Minn.-Crookston and 4-3 to Bemidji State.

The Yellowjackets swept the conference’s softball weekly awards. Senior Brittanee Fisher was named the Softball Player of the Week after she batted .636, going 7 for 11 with six runs, five RBI, one double and three home runs. Fisher went 2 for 3 with a double and a run scored against Mary before going 2 for 2 with a three-run homer against Minot State. She started a late rally with a solo home run on Sunday against Minn.-Crookston before going 2 for 4 with two runs scored and a solo homer against Bemidji State.

Junior Alyssa Etheridge earned Softball Pitcher of the Week accolades after going the distance in Saturday’s 8-0 shutout of host Minot State at the Minot State Bubble Invite. She allowed three hits and two walks while striking out seven to notch her second win of the season. She succeeded in leaving batters stranded as the Beavers went 0-6 with runners in scoring position.

Western Oregon, meanwhile, made the most of its trip to Hawaii, returning home with a 3-3 record. The Wolves opened with a split last Friday against Hawaii Hilo on Oahu, dropping the opener 8-4 and winning the nightcap 9-0. On Saturday, WOU lost a 13-11 slugfest with Hawaii Pacific in the first game before using a two-run eighth to collect a 5-3 extra-innings win in the second game.

The Wolves closed the six-game trip against Chaminade on Monday, winning the opener 4-1 and dropping the nightcap 3-0.

Freshman Maddie Doig was the leading offensive player for the Wolves in the six games, batting .421 with three runs and two doubles. Junior Zoie Recolan batted .389 with three doubles and three RBI, two of which came in the win over Hawaii Hilo, while senior Logan Carlos batted .375 with five hits, two triples and five RBI. She went 3 for 5 in the win over Hawaii Hilo.

Central Washington became the second GNAC team to host home games this season, scoring 8-0 and 5-4 wins over British Columbia on Sunday. Senior Rhaney Harris threw a two-hit shutout in the opener with four strikeouts for the five-inning win. The Wildcats trailed 4-1 after two innings before scoring one in the fourth and three in the fifth for the come-from-behind win.

Western Washington emerged with two wins in a road trip to Division III Puget Sound on Friday, scoring 9-4 and 6-3 wins. Senior Tatum Dow had five hits in the two wins while senior Dakota Brooks opened the second game with a second-inning grand slam.

After three weeks of non-conference play, GNAC teams will now turn the focus on each other for the next month. Teams will engage each other for two weeks of non-conference contests designed to provide teams games against in-region Division II competition.

Saint Martin’s will host Central Washington on Friday before traveling north to Simon Fraser on Sunday. The Wildcats will play at Simon Fraser on Saturday. Northwest Nazarene will host Western Washington for four games on Friday and Saturday while Western Oregon will host Montana State Billings for four games on Saturday and Sunday.

THIS WEEK’S GNAC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Softball Player
Brittanee Fisher, Montana State Billings
1B • 5-9 • Sr. • Billings, Mont.

Fisher batted .636 in the Yellowjackets’ 2-2 week at the Minot State Bubble Invite, going 7 for 11 with six runs, five RBI, one double and three home runs. Fisher went 2 for 3 with a double and a run scored in Saturday’s 7-4 win over Mary before going 2 for 2 with a three-run homer in the 8-0 win over Minot State. She started a late rally with a solo home run in Sunday’s 6-4 loss to Minn.-Crookston before going 2 for 4 with two runs and a solo homer in the 4-3 loss to Bemidji State.

Also Nominated: Allie Thiessen (Central Washington), Sidney Booth (Northwest Nazarene), Janique Balcaen (Simon Fraser), Logan Carlos (Western Oregon), Ellie Jespersen (Western Washington).

Softball Pitcher
Alyssa Etheridge, Montana State Billings
P • 5-9 • Jr. • Grants Pass, Ore.

Fisher went the distance in Saturday’s 8-0 shutout of host Minot State at the Minot State Bubble Invite. She allowed three hits and two walks while striking out seven to notch her second win of the season. She succeeded in leaving batters stranded as the Beavers went 0-6 with runners in scoring position.

Also Nominated: Rhaney Harris (Central Washington), Charlotte Forniss (Northwest Nazarene), Chelsea Smith (Western Oregon), Joie Baker (Western Washington).