SEETON NATIONAL POTW: A six-home run week for MSUB’s Teagan Seeton was enough to earn the sophomore the NFCA National Player of the Week honor. Seeton took advantage of an eight-game week for the Yellowjackets, batting .600 and collecting all six of her long balls in a five-game span. The power surge lifted her to No. 1 in the conference and 10th nationally with nine home runs on the season. Seeton and the Yellowjackets (7-16-1, 1-3) salvaged a win in the series finale against Western Oregon, and they’ll look to take that momentum into a four-game series at Central Washington (3-16, 1-3) beginning on Friday.

COLLINS PITCHES WOLVES TO 3-1 GNAC START: Western Oregon knew they were getting an ace in UTEP transfer Mackenzee Collins, but the start to her WOU career has been even better than the Wolves could have projected. The right-hander ranks second in the conference with 66 strikeouts, after mowing down 26 hitters last week including a 2024 GNAC single-game high 13 in her outing against MSUB. Collins also holds the fourth-lowest ERA in the league at 1.58, while limiting the opposition to a .201 batting average across 62 innings pitched.

BOOTH SHUTS OUT RED LEAFS: Northwest Nazarene senior Sidney Booth delivered a pair of shutout pitching performances last week, helping the Nighthawks complete a four-game sweep of Simon Fraser. Booth upped her career total to 26 shutouts, ranking her third in GNAC history in that category. The GNAC’s career strikeout leader, Booth also ranks eighth among active Division II pitchers with 657 strikeouts in her tenure at NNU.

SAINTS HOST RED LEAFS: Saint Martin’s (12-8, 3-1) is coming off a 3-1 series victory over Central Washington, and will play host to Simon Fraser in a four-game set that kicks off on Saturday in Lacey, Wash. Chloe Leverington has been the star of the show for SMU in 2024, as she enters the week leading the GNAC with 67 strikeouts in 55 2/3 innings across 17 appearances. Leverington carries a 2.01 ERA, and leads the conference with four saves this spring.

DUCLOS CONTINUES SB PURSUIT: Leading the GNAC with 15 stolen bases this season, Simon Fraser’s Megan Duclos has climbed to No. 5 in GNAC history with 73 steals in her four-season career. Duclos leads the team and ranks seventh in the conference with a .391 batting average, while ranking third in the league with 16 runs scored.

The National Fastpitch Coaches Association releases its national rankings every at noon (ET) on every Tuesday throughout the season, beginning on Feb. 13. The 2024 preseason coaches poll was released on Jan. 23.

Western Washington and Northwest Nazarene each moved up to their highest ranking of the 2024 season, with the Vikings at No. 15 and the Nighthawks at No. 18 entering this week’s games.

March 11 GNAC Softball Players of the Week

Player of the Week – Teagan Seeton, Montana State Billings

First-career player of the week.

Seeton put together a huge offensive week, leading all GNAC players with six home runs across the Yellowjackets’ eight games played. Seeton also led all GNAC players last week with 12 RBIs and 10 runs scored, while posting a slash line of .600/.630/1.320. Seeton had multiple hits in four different games, going 15-for-25 overall during the stretch. Her six home runs all came within a five-game span, including a 2-homer game in her 4-for-4 performance against Concordia-St. Paul on March 5. Seeton struck out just three times across her 17 plate appearances, and played sturdy defense with two errors in 23 total chances.

Also Nominated: Alyssa Benthagen, CWU; Sidney Booth, NNU; Heather Ebner, SMU; Natalie Willoughby, WOU.

Pitcher of the Week – Mackenzee Collins, Western Oregon

First-career pitcher of the week.

Collins was dominant in her team’s 3-1 series win over Montana State Billings, striking out 26 batters across 16 innings pitched. Collins allowed just three earned runs for a 1.31 ERA, while holding the opposition to a batting average of .213. Among her GNAC-leading strikeout total last week, Collins had 13 of them in her opening performance which was the highest single-game total by any GNAC pitcher thus far in 2024. Collins now ranks second in the GNAC with 66 strikeouts across her 62 innings pitched this season.

Also Nominated: Ashlee Laver, CWU; Caitlyn James, MSUB; Sidney Booth, NNU; Chloe Leverington, SMU.

The 2024 GNAC Softball Championships will be played May 2-4 at Viking Field on the campus of Western Washington University in Bellingham, Wash. The four-team double-elimination tournament will determine the recipient of the conference's automatic berth in the NCAA Championships. The top-four teams in the final GNAC regular-season standings earn berths into the conference tournament.