Box Score (Game 1)
Box Score (Game 2)

ELLENSBURG (Mar. 7) -- Junior Keilani Cruz (Tacoma/Curtis HS) hit a go-ahead home run in the fourth inning, and pitcher Lauren Hadenfeld (Vancouver/Evergreen HS) threw five innings of two-hit relief as Central Washington University rallied from a 5-0 softball deficit to defeat visiting Saint Martin's University, 10-5, in game two of Sunday's Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader at Gary & Bobbi Frederick Field. Central won the opening game, 8-0 in five innings, and claimed the four-game series by a 3-1 count.

The Wildcats are now 6-4 overall and 6-2 in GNAC play, assuring themselves no worse than a tie for first place in the league standings through two weeks of conference action. Saint Martin's fell to 4-9 overall and 3-5 in the GNAC with Sunday's losses.

Central overcame a 5-0 deficit through 1 1/2 innings in the second game, calling on Hadenfeld, the game-one starter, to contain the Saint Martin's offense while the Wildcat offense came to life. The visiting Saints scored once in the first and four times in the second against two CWU pitchers, and the Wildcats called upon Hadenfeld to face the second batter of the third inning. She proceeded to shut down Saint Martin's by allowing just two singles -- one each in the sixth and seventh innings -- while striking out four.

While Hadenfeld kept Saint Martin's at bay, the Wildcat offense came to life in the bottom of the third inning. Central put together six singles in the frame, including a two-run hit by junior Samantha Petrich (Chehalis/W.F. West HS) and an infield RBI single by senior Ashley Fix (Puyallup). The Wildcats' other two runs scored on an error and a groundout by freshman Carrina Wagner (Tacoma/Spanaway Lake HS).

After tying the game in the third, Cruz gave Central the lead in the fourth with her first round-tripper as a Wildcat, a solo shot to left-center field to cap an 11-pitch at bat that included four consecutive two-strike foul balls. A three-run fifth inning, which included RBI singles from Danielle Monson (Marysville/Marysville-Pilchuck HS), Cruz, and Petrich, gave the Wildcats three insurance tallies.

Central had at least one hit from each of its nine starting hitters in game two, collecting a season-high 13 hits. Four players -- Monson, Cruz, Petrich, and Fix -- all had two hits for the Wildcats in the game, while two Saint Martin's hitters -- Megan Antonovich and Kelsey McGladrey -- had two hits apiece to lead the Saints.

In the opener, junior Kelsey Haupert (Olympia/Black Hills HS) drove in five runs with a two-run single in the third inning and a three-run home run in the fifth inning to lead the Wildcat offense to an 8-0 shutout victory over the Saints.

Haupert broke a scoreless tie with her two-out single in the third, and then started a six-run fifth with her blast to center field. Central went ahead 6-0 on a fielder's choice, and then finished the mercy rule-shortened contest with a two-run single by Cruz.

Hadenfeld, now 4-1 and owning a six-to-one strikeout-to-walk ratio on the season, was dominant inside the pitching circle. She scattered four hits -- three of which were singles by Antonovich -- and struck out eight in five innings of work. Cruz and Haupert each had two hits for Central in the opener.

With its second consecutive 3-1 series victory, the Wildcats will take their 6-2 GNAC record to Bellingham for a four-game series with Western Washington next Saturday (Mar. 13) and Sunday (Mar. 14).