Bearcats Have Tough Day at the Plate in Doubleheader Loss to George Fox

Newberg, Ore. - Willamette Softball was only able to put together four hits during a doubleheader loss to George Fox on Saturday. The Bearcats lost a 1-0 pitching duel in game one and then fell 11-3 in the second game after holding a 3-0 lead early in the game.

The opening game was a pitching battle between Willamette's Kenna Davis and the Bruins' Jordyn Relethford.  The Bearcats were able to get a runner on base against Relethford in the first and third innings, but weren't able to bring a run across, and Davis didn't allow any baserunners through the first three innings while striking out three.

The lone hit for GFU came in the bottom of the fourth when Sharon Tomei led off the inning with a home run to give the hosts a 1-0 lead.  Davis retired the next seven batters in order before running into a bit of trouble in the sixth, but with two runners on, she was able to get a fly out and pop out to keep the score 1-0.

Willamette had also threatened in the top of the sixth when Karsen Angel reached base on an error to open the inning, but the Bearcats weren't able to get that final hit to score Angel, and the Bruins made good plays on a couple of line drives that just wouldn't fall. 

Game two got off to a great start for the Bearcats as Maris Pinheiro and Desirae Hatfield singled, and Pinheiro was brought home on a hit by Lauren Stube to give Willamette a 1-0 lead.  After a walk to Faith Collar, Maggie Fleischmann brought home Hatfield with a sacrifice fly, and Alexandra Richards made the score 3-0 after she was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded two innings later.

The Bruins got two runs back in the bottom of the first and were able to take a 5-3 lead in the second thanks to some timely hitting.  While the Bearcats had been able to find their hitting rhythm off starting pitcher Nicole Ledendecker, they didn't have the same success with reliever Allison Heater.  Willamette was unable to reach base against Heater and George Fox closed out the game with a single in the bottom of the fifth to make the final score 11-3.

Fleischmann had the lone hit for Willamette in the opening game, while Pinheiro, Hatfield, and Stube all had hits in game two.  Fleischmann, Stube, and Richards batted in the Bearcat runs on the day.

Willamette returns to Newberg on Sunday, April 13th, to complete the series with George Fox with a doubleheader starting at 11:00 am.  The Bearcats will return home on Tuesday, April 15th, to host Pacific Lutheran University in games that were rained out last weekend.