WOLVES, SAINTS COLLIDE: The final series of the weekend pits a pair of playoff hopefuls against one another, as Western Oregon plays host to Saint Martin’s on Saturday (noon PT) and Sunday (noon PT). Western Oregon earned a non-conference 3-1 win over Saint Martin’s on Feb. 24 in Lacey, before a doubleheader between the teams on the following day was rained out. WOU won last week’s road series at Simon Fraser 3-1, while the Saints will look to break out of a seven-game losing skid when the series kicks off on Saturday.

The Wolves’ rotation features the dynamic pitching duo of Mackenzee Collins and Alivia Holden, who each hold a 1.24 ERA while combining to throw 73% of the team’s innings this season. Collins leads the GNAC and ranks in the top-40 nationally with 111 strikeouts this spring, while Holden leads the conference with an opponents’ batting average of .168. Saint Martin’s also features a pair of the league’s top pitchers, in Chloe Leverington (2.57 ERA) and Tia Ridings (3.58 ERA). Leverington is third in the conference with 91 strikeouts, and her six saves on the season rank second in Division II softball.

Offensively, WOU is propelled by the GNAC’s leading hitter in Victoria Zimmerman (.385). The sophomore leads the conference with an on-base percentage of .477, thanks in large part to 16 walks against just 12 strikeouts in her 113 plate appearances this season. Natalie Willoughby supplies the punch in the WOU lineup, leading the team with five home runs and 18 RBIs. Heather Ebner leads the Saints with three home runs and 27 RBIs, while ranking second on the team with a .349 batting average. Ashley Goodale is SMU’s sparkplug, batting a team-best .368 and reaching base at a clip of .439.

NIGHTHAWKS, ‘JACKETS LOOK TO BEAT THE WEATHER: The series between No. 19 Northwest Nazarene and Montana State Billings was pushed up one day due to the weekend weather forecast in the Magic City, as first pitch is now scheduled for 1 p.m. (MT) on Thursday at Avitus Group Stadium. After dropping their opening game 4-3 to Central Washington last week, NNU rallied to win the next three to propel itself into the jumble at the top of the conference standings. MSUB meanwhile is coming off a bye week as it will look to bring a well-rested roster into an important home series.

Sidney Booth pitched the 28th shutout of her career in her last outing, as she ranks third in GNAC history in that category entering the weekend. The senior is second in the conference in strikeouts with 105, innings pitched with 114.0 and opponents’ batting average at .175. Booth’s 16 wins this spring rank sixth in Division II softball.

Gina Skinner has been an equally effective arm in the Nighthawk rotation, carrying a 1.34 ERA, a .211 opponents’ batting average and throwing 68 innings so far in 2024. NNU’s offense is led by the power of Emma Bumatay (7 home runs, 29 RBIs) and Abigail Gagnon (4 home runs, 18 RBIs), while Emma Mulligan is has a team-high 12 steals and Jami Obringer has added 11.

Montana State Billings last played on March 23 at the Otter Softball Invitational, and the Yellowjackets will close the regular season with 12 of their final 16 games on their home turf. Teagan Seeton has emerged as one of the conference’s top bats, as she enters the weekend tied for the GNAC lead with 11 home runs to go along with a .354 batting average and a .750 slugging percentage. Kilee Imada and Jazlyn Kalehuawehe have each added five long balls for MSUB, which leads the GNAC in that category with 34 on the season. Newcomer Caitlyn James has been the top pitcher for MSUB, leading the GNAC with 120 1/3 innings pitched across her 16 starts.

BORDER BATTLE ON TAP: Winners of nine straight, No. 12 Western Washington will look to keep its momentum going against the Red Leafs in a series that begins at noon (PT) on Friday afternoon. WWU is coming off a four-game sweep of Saint Martin’s last week, which included a pair of gutsy extra-inning victories in Bellingham. The Vikings face a tough schedule to close the regular season, with 12 of their final 16 games coming on the road. Simon Fraser competed well despite dropping 3 of 4 games to the Wolves last week, with all three losses being decided by four or fewer runs. SFU is in the midst of a 12-game home streak, as it will host Montana State Billings next week.

Western Washington features one of the nation’s stingiest pitching staffs, as the Vikings’ team ERA of 1.57 ranks ninth in Division II softball. Kaiana Kong (0.99 ERA), Alli Kimball (1.49 ERA) and Joie Baker (2.00 ERA) have thrown all 218 innings this season, and have limited the opposition to a batting average of just .219. Kong’s sub-1.00 ERA leads the GNAC, while Baker ranks fourth in the league with 70 strikeouts and is tied with Kimball for second in the league with nine victories. At the plate, Emma Andrewjeski-Ramirez is tied for the GNAC lead with 11 home runs and leads the Vikings with 29 RBIs. Ashley Jacobson ranks second in the conference in hitting at .370, while adding five home runs and 18 RBIs. The Vikings are the top defensive team in the league with a fielding percentage of .970.

Monica Bourque is coming off perhaps her best weekend of the season in the circle, as she allowed just one earned run in 17 innings pitched against the Wolves. The freshman right-hander lowered her ERA to 3.88 with the big performance, and climbed to No. 8 in the conference with 35 strikeouts this spring. Megan Duclos stole three more bases last week, moving up to No. 2 on the all-time GNAC list. Duclos, who leads the conference with 20 steals this season, enters the weekend eight steals shy of the GNAC record of 86 set by Humboldt State’s Andrea Williams from 2001-04.

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 continued its ascent in the NFCA polls, climbing to its highest ranking of the season at No. 12. Northwest Nazarene jumped up three spots, climbing back into the top-20 at No. 19 this week.

March 25 GNAC Softball Players of the Week

Pitcher of the Week – Mackenzee Collins, Western Oregon

Second-career pitcher of the week, second this season.

Collins’ headline performance came after a seven-strikeout game on Friday in the Wolves’ 1-0 loss to SFU in eight innings. Collins led all GNAC pitchers last week in total strikeouts with 23 and opponents’ batting average at .155, while posting a 0.43 ERA across her 16 1/3 innings of work. The newcomer increased her GNAC-leading strikeout total on the season to 111, while lowering her ERA to a GNAC-second best 1.24.

“Mack is so successful because her goal is not necessarily to get strikeouts,” said Boytz. “She has huge confidence in the defense behind her, and that’s why she gets so many strikeouts. We talked a lot those last few innings about if we can go score, we can win because Mack can hold us on defense. Our offense relies so heavily on her, but we knew in that game we had to get her back and give her some run support.”

Also Nominated: Zoey Theophilus, CWU; Gina Skinner, NNU; Monica Bourque, SFU; Kaiana Kong, WWU.

Player of the Week – Maleah Andrews, Western Washington

First-career player of the week.

Andrews helped the Vikings to another 4-0 week as WWU extended its winning streak to nine games to stay tied for first in the GNAC standings. Andrews led all GNAC players last week in hitting (.538), on-base percentage (.625) and runs scored (6) while slugging at a clip of .615. Andrews had hits in all four of WWU’s games, none being bigger than her 10th-inning, walk-off single to give the Vikings a 2-1 win in the series opener. Not only was Andrews a difference-maker at the plate, but she played error-free defense in 22 chances at third base and helped the Vikings turn a pair of double plays.

“She has been great all year,” said WWU head coach Sheryl Gilmore. “On defense she brings energy and has good feet, a good glove and a great arm. She is really solid at the hot corner which allows us to have lock-down defense. What she did at the plate was great, and she came up clutch with the walk off. She is a great baserunner, is one of the most disciplined hitters we have and picks good pitches to swing at. She is well-rounded and is really a student of the game. Maleah is always asking questions which is cool to see from a freshman. She will continue to get better.”

Also Nominated: Alyssa Benthagen, CWU; Emma Mulligan, NNU; Abby McGlynn, SFU; Bella Valdes, WOU.