By: Evan O'Kelly, Associate Commissioner for Communications

NAMPA, Idaho – A seven-run fourth inning turned a nailbiter of a game into a runaway victory for Simon Fraser on Friday afternoon at Halle Field, as the Red Leafs put up a big number on their way to a 9-0 triumph over Montana State Billings at the 2025 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships.
 
A seven-run top of the fourth inning proved to be the difference, as SFU stayed alive and advanced to a second elimination game against Saint Martin’s scheduled for 3 p.m. on Friday. SFU improved to 23-24 on the season with the win, and will have a rematch against the Saints whom they lost to 2-1 in the opener on Thursday.
 
“The biggest thing for us was just bouncing back from yesterday,” said SFU head coach Stacy Fournier, the 2025 GNAC co-Coach of the Year. “We went out and competed yesterday, but we just didn’t quite string the hits together. Coming out and competing and competing on day two was going to be huge for us against a team that hits the ball well.”
 
Sophomore second-team all-conference pitcher Monica Bourque turned in her second straight outstanding effort in the circle, delivering a shutout to help keep her team’s season alive. The right-hander allowed four hits and three walks, while striking out six and throwing 104 pitches on the way to her fourth shutout of the campaign and 12th victory. “She has just been lights out for us,” Fournier said on Bourque. “She was out with injury partway through the season, and since she has been back she has been continuing to get better. She is such a competitor and she always wants the ball, which is so fun to watch. She finds different ways to get outs, and it’s really cool for us to have.”
 
Abby McGlynn hit her 10th home run of the season, Grace McMillan had a team-high three RBIs and Janique Balcaen was 2-for-3 in a game where the Red Leafs totaled nine hits.  “We talked about putting in a fight,” said McGlynn, a senior leftfielder. “They took the series from us earlier in the year, and we just wanted to come back with a fight. Being here is big to everyone, and we are just trying to move this program forward.”
 
The Yellowjackets’ season came to a close with a record of 16-28, as they made their second appearance at the conference tournament and first since the 2015 campaign. Four different MSUB players had hits in the quiet game offensively, with pinch hitter Grace Hood notching the team’s lone double. MSUB starter Emily Watters took the loss, allowing four runs on three hits with one strikeout and three walks in 3 1/3 innings. Ashley Akers tossed the final 1 1/3 innings, allowing one run on two hits with two strikeouts and no walks.
 
MSUB senior second baseman Lauren Blaschak made a key defensive play in the top of the second, snagging a sharp ground ball up the middle on her back hand and flipping to second for the first out. The strong effort saved a run from scoring, and helped limit an SFU rally to a single run which scored on an RBI-ground out by Lauren Lugtigheid.
 
Bourque worked out of trouble in the bottom of the third, stranding a pair of runners aboard including the tying run at third base. It proved to be the Yellowjackets’ best chance to get back into the game, as it slipped away from them in the ensuing half inning.
 
In an inning where the Red Leafs sent 10 hitters to the plate, Kristen Davyduke led off with a single before a pair of walks loaded the bases. Back-to-back RBI-singles by Lizzy Sugrive and Erin Murphy increased SFU’s lead to 3-0 and kept the bases loaded for McMillan. The SFU shortstop smoked a bases-clearing double into the gap in right-center, prompting the loudest cheer of the day from the visitor’s dugout. McGlynn followed by turning around on an inside pitch and blasting it over the fence in right to cap the rally and make the score 8-0. “We put together the small hits and our slappers had some RBIs,” McGlynn said on the fourth inning. “Grace came through with a big hit to clear the bases, and I was just trying to keep the inning going.”
 
“That is the offense we have been used to the last little while,” Fournier said on the game-changing inning. “It goes away from us sometimes, but we just have to remind our team to stick with their approach at the plate. They really did that in that inning.”
 
Head-to-head at the GNAC Championships: 0-0; Friday was the first-ever meeting between MSUB and SFU at the conference tournament.
 
Simon Fraser at the GNAC Championships
Tournament Wins: 0
Appearances: 3 (2013, 2018, 2025)
 
Montana State Billings at the GNAC Championships
Tournament Wins: 1 (2015)
Appearances: 2 (2015, 2025)