PARKLAND, Wash. - Katie Hanten hit walkoff home runs in both
games on Saturday afternoon as Pacific Lutheran swept visiting
George Fox, 11-1 and 11-3, in Northwest Conference softball action
at PLU Field.
Hanten ended both games in the bottom of the sixth inning via
the eight-run rule. She came into the first game as a pinch
hitter and ripped a three-run blast over the fence in
left-centerfield, and then hooked a grand slam homer just inside
the leftfield foul pole to end the second contest.
With the victories, the Lutes improve to 11-7 in the conference
and to 17-11 overall. George Fox is now 9-24 overall and 3-18 in
the conference.
Ramona Lorton went the six-inning distance in the first game to
improve her season pitching record to 8-4. She allowed just
one hit, a third inning single to Kerrianne Davidson, while walking
four and striking out 10. The Bruins scored their only run in the
sixth inning by making the most of two errors, two walks and a wild
pitch.
PLU scored an unearned run in the first and added two more
unearned tallies in the second as the Bruins finished the game with
three errors. The Lutes scored three times in the fourth
inning, including Stacey Hagensen's RBI single, before ending the
game in the bottom of the sixth with five runs. Hagensen had her
second run-scoring single, another run scored on a groundout by
Adrienne Ross, and then Hanten ended it with her three-run homer.
The Lutes finished with first game with 14 hits against Erin
Lee, whose record fell to 7-10.
In the second game, the Lutes tallied single runs in the first
and second to take the early lead. Hagensen legged out a
hit on a suicide squeeze bunt to drive in Amber Roberts with the
first run, and Haley Harshaw clubbed her second home run in three
games to make it 2-0.
It stayed that way until the bottom of the fourth when PLU added
three more, one coming on Montessa Califano's RBI double.
The Bruins scored three times in the fifth to cut their deficit
to 5-3. Nicole Renteria had a run-scoring single and Shelby Klein
drove in two more with one of her two base hits. Ally VanSchoorl
entered the game in relief of Hagensen and got the next two batters
to end the rally.
The Lutes scored six times in the sixth to end the game.
Hagensen had a two-run single to make the score 7-3. With the bases
loaded and two outs, Hanten repeated her first-game feat to wrap up
PLU's doubleheader sweep.
Hagensen went 4 1/3 innings to pick up the win to improve to 4-5
and VanSchoorl struck out three and didn't allow a hit in the final
1 2/3 innings for her first save of the season. Taylor Whitmore was
the losing pitcher, allowing 11 hits in falling to 2-12 this
season.
In addition to Hanten's heroics, Hagensen was 3-for-4 in both
games and finished the twinbill with five runs batted in, while
Harshaw was 5-for-5 with four runs scored.
Both teams return to conference action at noon
on Sunday, PLU hosting Lewis & Clark and George Fox
playing at Puget Sound.
- PLU -
