PARKLAND – PLU softball finished its 2015 season on Sunday with a doubleheader sweep of cross-town rival Puget Sound. The Lutes defeated the Loggers 13-4 in the first game and won the second game by the run rule with a 10-1 final score in five innings.
PLU concluded its season in fifth place with a 16-12 Northwest Conference record, just narrowly missing the NWC Tournament. The Lutes went 23-17 overall. The Loggers ended their 2015 run with a 1-27 conference record, 4-36 overall.
In the first game, the Lutes combined for 17 hits including three home runs. PLU put runs on the board early with Emily McConnell and Crysti Snyder hitting RBI-singles to score three runs in the first inning. The Lutes added a run each in the third and fourth before two solo home runs in the fifth by Snyder and Jessica Wallace increased their lead to 7-3. In the seventh inning, PLU rallied to score six more runs on six hits, including a three-run blast by Tori Hamura, and three Logger errors.
Snyder went a perfect 4-for-4 with three RBI and three runs scored. Hamura finished 3-for-5 with three RBI and two runs scored while Wallace went 4-for-5. Thalen Masada finished 3-for-5 with a triple and a stolen base.
Marissa Miller (10-8) tossed her thirteenth complete game of the year, allowing one earned run on 10 hits and one walk. She struck out five.
The second game was more tightly contested with a solo run scored for the Loggers in the third inning followed by a solo run for the Lutes in the fourth. PLU finally broke through in the top of the fifth, rallying for nine runs on nine hits to pull ahead 10-1. Masada led off with a single followed by a McConnell double to score her from first. Later in that inning with the bases loaded, Snyder doubled to knock in all runners. Five more runs would score on a single by Osaki, a walk by Makayla Bentz, a two-RBI single by McConnell and an error by the Logger's center fielder. PLU retired the side in the fifth to end the game on the run rule.
McConnell finished 2-for-3 with three RBI while Osaki went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBI. Leah Butters (11-8) pitched 4.2 innings, surrendering only two hits and one walk. Miller faced one batter.
