‘CATS, WOLVES MEET AGAIN: Western Oregon picked up a rain-shortened, 2-1 win over Central Washington when the teams met on March 2 in Monmouth, before the next two scheduled games between the teams were rained out. Just over a month later, the two will square off in what is the most important series of the season to this point for each of them. The Wildcats were last in action in a 3-1 series loss to Northwest Nazarene on March 29-30 in Nampa, and CWU is scheduled to host eight of its final 12 regular season games.

Alyssa Benthagen has led CWU offensively this season, hitting .313 with a team-leading three home runs and 15 RBIs. In the circle, CWU has relied on the one-two punch of Ashlee Laver (2.97 ERA, 97.0 IP) and Payton Kessler (6.23 ERA, 65.0 IP) to handle the majority of the workload. Laver’s 54 strikeouts this spring rank her fifth in the conference.

Western Oregon’s pitching has been its strong point this season, as the Wolves rank third in the conference with a team ERA of 2.28. Newcomer Mackenzee Collins, who has struck out a GNAC-leading 126 batters, leads the team with a 1.76 ERA across 115 1/3 innings pitched. Alivia Holden is close behind with a 1.87 ERA and 29 strikeouts in her 60 innings of work, while Erica Soliz holds a 3.15 ERA across seven starts for WOU. Victoria Zimmerman leads the team and ranks fourth in the conference with a batting average of .360, while Bella Valdes’s 14 stolen bases are third most in the conference.

VIKINGS TAKE WINNING STREAK TO BILLINGS: After opening the 2024 season with a GNAC-record 13 consecutive victories, Western Washington enters its weekend series at MSUB in the midst of its second 13-game winning streak of the spring. The Vikings slashed past Simon Fraser, out-scoring the Red Leafs 27-6 in last week’s series across the border. One of Division II’s elite pitching staffs, WWU ranks sixth nationally with a team ERA of 1.49 and seventh nationally with a team WHIP of 1.03.

All three of WWU’s pitchers have earned a GNAC Pitcher of the Week award this spring, with junior Joie Baker being the latest recipient after 13 shutout innings last week. Baker has a team-high seven complete games in 2024, while striking out 83 batters in 104 innings and holding a 1.75 ERA. Freshman Kaiana Kong ranks 14th in Division II with a 1.01 ERA, and ranks third in the GNAC with an opponents’ batting average of .190. Alli Kimball meanwhile is third in the conference with an ERA of 1.53.

Offensively, Ashley Jacobson is second in the conference with a .365 batting average, while reaching base at a clip of .440 and slugging .594. Emma Andrewjeski-Ramirez is second in the GNAC with 11 home runs and is tied for the league lead with 31 RBIs, while freshman Maleah Andrews is tied for the league lead in runs with 29 and sophomore Hailey Rath is tied for the league lead in hits with 42.

Montana State Billings is led by the powerful bat of Teagan Seeton, who has a GNAC-leading 12 home runs while ranking second in the league with 30 RBIs. Seeton’s .743 slugging percentage is also the highest in the conference as she paces an MSUB team that leads the GNAC with 35 home runs. Caitlyn James leads the GNAC with 132 2/3 innings pitched, while pacing the Yellowjackets with 43 strikeouts and a 5.43 ERA in her first year at MSUB.

SAINTS, NIGHTHAWKS BOTH COMING OFF SWEEPS: The series in Lacey pits two of the conference’s hottest teams against one another, as SMU and NNU each swept their four-game sets last week. The Nighthawks enter the weekend winners of seven straight, dating back to their 3-1 series victory over Central Washington two weeks ago. Saint Martin’s meanwhile snapped out of a nine-game losing skid with last week’s road sweep of WOU.

Sidney Booth (1.56 ERA) and Gina Skinner (1.19 ERA) are two of the conference’s top pitchers, and have combined to throw 208 of the team’s 259 1/3 innings this season. Booth ranks second in the GNAC in strikeouts (125), opponents’ batting average (.180) and innings pitched (125 2/3), while her 18 victories on the spring rank fourth in Division II softball. Booth, the GNAC’s all-time strikeout leader with 728 and counting, also ranks fourth in GNAC history with a career opponents’ batting average of .203.

Saint Martin’s freshman Heather Ebner, the reigning GNAC Player of the Week, climbed to the top of the conference leaderboard in batting average at .384 and on-base percentage at .479 in her first collegiate season. Ebner is tied with Andrewjeski-Ramirez for the league lead in RBIs with 31, and she owns a slugging percentage of .586 which ranks her fourth.

Chloe Leverington is coming off a week in which she allowed zero runs across 9 2/3 innings of work, as she carries a 2.31 ERA into this weekend’s series. Leverington is tied for the Division II lead in saves with seven, while ranking third in the GNAC with 99 strikeouts across her 94 innings pitched.

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.

Each with another undefeated week, Western Washington and Northwest Nazarene climbed one spot in the latest NFCA poll. The Vikings continued a four-week trend of rising to their highest ranking of the season at No. 11, while NNU jumped up to No. 18 in the latest top-25.

April 8 GNAC Softball Players of the Week

Player of the Week – Heather Ebner, Saint Martin’s

First-career player of the week.

Ebner led the Saints to a big four-game road sweep of Western Oregon, playing a key role both offensively and defensively. The freshman led all GNAC players in batting average (.615) and on-base percentage (.722), and she had three doubles among her eight hits for a slugging percentage of .846. Defensively at third base, Ebner didn’t commit a single error in 19 total chances, and matched her season high with six assists in the series opener against the Wolves. Ebner raised her season slash line to .384/.479/.586 with the big week, and her 11 doubles on the season are the most in the conference.

“Heather has been a big addition to our team this year, both offensively and defensively,” said SMU head coach Jim Peterson. “She is a hard worker and is always looking to improve her game.”

Also Nominated: Teagan Seeton, MSUB; Keana Bell, NNU; Maleah Andrews, WWU.

Pitcher of the Week – Joie Baker, Western Washington

First-career pitcher of the week.

Baker was dominant in the circle for the Vikings, as she helped her team to a four-game sweep of Simon Fraser on the road to stay at the top of the GNAC standings. Baker allowed zero earned runs in 13 innings pitched, while posting the top opposing batting average by a GNAC pitcher last week at .119. Baker racked up 13 strikeouts in her 13 innings of work, securing a pair of victories in the series.

“Joie has worked so hard to get back from last year’s injury for her teammates,” said WWU head coach Sheryl Gilmore. “She has continued to work hard every day this year. She is humble, is a competitor and supports our other pitchers and makes them better. She has gone against the best opponents we have faced this season. She is the rock of our staff and has really helped Alli (Kimball) and Kaiana (Kong) be where they’re at. We wouldn’t be where we are as a team without her.”

Also Nominated: Gina Skinner, NNU; Chloe Leverington, SMU; Julia Hansen, SFU.