By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
TACOMA, Wash. -- Willamette University and the University of Puget Sound Sound played a high-scoring battle in a Northwest Conference softball game that was suspended on Saturday, March 7 due to darkness and was completed on Sunday, March 8. Puget Sound held a 7-3 lead at the start of the fifth inning when play was stopped on Saturday. Willamette rallied to take a 10-7 lead after scoring five runs in the top of the sixth inning, but the Loggers scored five runs in the bottom of the sixth and went on to defeat the Bearcats, 12-10.
Puget Sound's record went to 2-7 overall, 1-1 in the NWC. Willamette slipped to 4-7 overall, 3-3 in the NWC. The teams were set to play two more games on Sunday to complete the NWC weekend series.
Each team scored twice in the first inning. For Willamette, Marykate DeLuca (Fy, C, San Diego, CA/San Diego International Studies) earned an RBI on a bases-loaded walk, while Shaye Mott (Fy, P/1B, Livermore, CA/Granada HS) drove in a run with a single up the middle. In the bottom of the first, Marissa Oda brought home two runs with a double to left center.
DeLuca added a sacrifice fly in the top of the third to put the Bearcats up 3-2. Kaitlyn Webster of Puget Sound hit an RBI double in the bottom of the third, and later scored on a single by Oda, to give the Loggers a 4-3 lead.
Three runs in the fourth inning for Puget Sound, including two that resulted from a double by Ueyama, increased the margin to 7-3. That's where the score remained when the game was suspended.
When action resumed, the Bearcats cut the lead to 7-5 by pushing two runs across the plate in the top of the fifth. A walk issued to Gianna Marchese (So., 3B/1B, Seattle, WA/Bishop Blanchet HS/St. Martin's Univ.) and an infield error on a ball hit by Payten Healy (So., SS, Crescent City, CA/Del Norte HS), left the Bearcats with runners and second and third. Marchese scored on a passed ball, and Kendra Knapp (Fy, OF, Portland, OR (Sunset HS) was hit by a pitch. Marchese scored on a double-steal.
The Bearcats surged into the led with five runs in the top of the sixth. Key plays were a bases-loaded walk issued to Mott, a two-run double by Brianna Majors (Fy, SS/2B, San Diego, CA/Cathedral Catholic HS), and an error hit into by Benny that led to two more runs.
Puget Sound battled back with five runs in the bottom of the inning. The big hit was a three-run homer by Oda that gave the Loggers an 11-10 lead. Earlier in the inning, Kelsie Sullivan hit an RBI double to right center. The last run scored on a bases-loaded infield single to third by Hana DeGuzman.
For the game, Puget Sound attained 15 hits and received three walks. The Bearcats managed just five hits, but benefited from 11 walks and two hit batsmen. Noelle Kerr improved to 1-1 for the Loggers after pitching the final two innings and limiting the Bearcats to one run, one hit and one walk. Jocelyn Glasgo (Sr., P/OF, Rochester, WA/Tumwater HS) fell to 0-2 with the loss for Willamette.
On offense, Majors was 2 of 5 for WU with a double, two runs and two RBIs. DeLuca, Adele Benny (Fy, OF, Bee Cave, TX/Lake Travis HS), Mott equalled Majors with two RBIs apiece. Bailey Hillmick (Jr., DP/UT, Athena, OR/Weston-McEwen HS) was 1 for 1 with three walks. Oda led the way for Puget Sound, as she went 3 of 4 with a double, a homer, one run and six RBIs. Ueyama was 3 of 5 with four runs, a double and two RBIs.
