Trio of Bearcats Each Record Three Hits in Doubleheader against Lutes

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

CANBY, Ore. -- Willamette University softball players Brianna Majors (Sr., SS/2B, San Diego, CA/Cathedral Catholic HS), Kendra Knapp (Jr., RF, Portland, OR/Sunset HS), and Faith Collar (So., P/UT, Portland, OR/Roosevelt HS) each collected three hits during a doubleheader versus Pacific Lutheran University at the Canby High School Field on Sunday, March 12. Despite their offensive success, Pacific Lutheran won both games, grabbing an 8-1 win in the opener followed by a 14-9 win in the second game. The four-game series was moved to Canby High School's artificial turf field due to wet grounds at the WU Softball Field.

Pacific Lutheran and the Bearcats split the first two games of the series on Saturday. With Sunday's wins, the Lutes improved to 15-5 overall, 7-1 in the Northwest Conference. Willamette fell to 10-8 on the season, 5-3 in the NWC.

Majors hit a double in the first game and went 2 for 5 with two runs scored in the second game. Collar was 3 for 3 in the second game with five RBIs and a run scored. Knapp went 3 for 5 and scored twice in the second game.

PLU pitcher Cassidy Conrad earned her second win of the series in the first game on Sunday. She threw all seven innings and struck out five batters, while allowing three hits, four walks, and one run. She upped her record to 7-1 this season. Conrad also tossed the first three innings of the second game, but left the circle after allowing five runs and seven hits.

Lutes Win First Game on Sunday behind Conrad's Pitching

Conrad stymied Willamette's offense for the second time this weekend, as she threw her second three-hitter against the Bearcats in Sunday's first game. She also held WU to three hits in the first game on Saturday, won by the Lutes 14-1 on the run rule in five innings. Her continued success at the start of Sunday's action helped PLU tack on an 8-1 win.

The Lutes took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first inning. With two outs and Erin McGrath at second base, Kennedy Kile blasted a two-run homer to left field. PLU added a run in the fourth inning on an RBI single by Cailey Collado to increase the margin to 3-0. After plating two runs in the top of the fifth inning for a 5-0 lead, the Lutes tacked on two more runs in the sixth on a two-run homer by Zoe Smithson.

In the bottom of the sixth for Willamette, Marykate DeLuca (Sr., C, San Diego, CA/San Diego International Studies) hit a double with two outs. Majors also doubled, but DeLuca was only able to reach third base after making sure that the ball wasn't caught as it landed near the left field line. Erickson followed with a walk that ended with a wild pitch, allowing DeLuca to score. PLU completed the scoring with an RBI single by Chaella Gallapon in the top of the seventh.

PLU registered nine hits, led by Paola Garcia, who went 3 of 4 with a double and two runs scored. Anna Foster was 2 of 4 with two doubles and a run scored. Kila finished 1 of 2 with a homer, two RBIs and two walks.

Bearcats Tie Second Game at 5-5, before  PLU Pulls Away

Willamette rallied from a 5-0 deficit after two-and-a-half innings to tie the second game with five runs in the bottom of the third. The Bearcats earned five hits during the inning, including an RBI single by Emma Elliott (Fy., OF, Battle Ground, WA/Battle Ground HS), a two-RBI single by Collar, and a two-run double by Julia Koorn (Jr., 1B/3B, Purmerend, Netherlands).

Later, the Lutes led by a slim 7-6 lead after five innings, but scored five runs in the top of the sixth for a 12-6 margin. The outburst by PLU included a three-run homer by Paola Garcia and solo home runs from Rylie Wada and Anna Foster. 

WU scored three times in the bottom of the sixth to reduce the margin to 12-9. Cora Erickson (Jr., C, Issaquah, WA/Issaquah HS) belted an RBI double to score Kendra Knapp (Jr., RF, Portland, OR/Sunset HS). Collar followed with a two-run single to right center as Elliott and Erickson crossed the plate.

Pacific Lutheran added two runs in the seventh. Both runs scored on a single by Galapon. Garcia led the Lutes by going 3 for 5 during the game with four RBIs and two runs scored.

Willamette will play a doubleheader against Pacific University on Saturday, March 18 to start a four-game series. Game time in Forest Grove, Oregon, is set for 12 p.m. (PDT).