Softball | 4/28/2017 9:00:00 AM

ELLENSBURG, Wash.- The Central Washington University softball team will look to return to its winning ways and build upon its top position in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference when they travel to Oregon to face Concordia University and Western Oregon University this Saturday and Sunday.
 
The Wildcats secured its fourth GNAC Championships berth after defeating Saint Martin's last Sunday, but failed to snag their fifth GNAC regular season title after the Saints won the final three games of the series. CWU can still clinch the top spot heading into the GNAC Championships with a pair of wins this weekend or a win and a Saint Martin's loss.  Western Washington can also catch the Wildcats, but would have to win all of its remaining games and have CWU lose each of its last four.
 
The top four teams at the end of the regular season this weekend will receive a bid to the 2017 GNAC Softball Championships in Lacey, Wash., May 4-6. The top four teams as of today are Central Washington (19-5), Saint Martin's (14-8), Western Washington (15-9) and Northwest Nazarene (13-11). Western Oregon is in fifth place at 11-11 and can still claim a spot, while Montana State Billings at 9-15, Concordia at 8-16 and Simon Fraser at 5-19 are mathematically eliminated from tournament contention.   
 
THE MATCHUPS
 
Opponent – Concordia University
Live Stats and Video -- Wildcatsports.com/live
Location – Gordon Farbert Field No. 4, Hillsboro, Ore. 
Game Times – April 29 3 p.m. & 5 p.m.
 
The Cavaliers enter their four final games of the season with a 16-27 overall record including an 8-16 GNAC record after going 2-2 this past weekend on the road. Concordia is in seventh place, one game out of sixth place in the GNAC.
 
As a team, the Cavaliers are batting .295 with five players hitting over .300 in Meghan Luebbert (.460), MckenZie Smith (.355), Taylor Bussey (.354), Courtney Somers (.323) and Sam Rice (.310). Luebbert also leads the team in slugging percentage, on-base percentage, runs scored, hits, doubles and stolen bases.
 
Concordia split its games against Simon Fraser and Western Washington last weekend, earning 9-3 and 7-4 wins at Simon Fraser on Friday before taking 6-4 and 12-4 losses at Western Washington on Sunday.
 
The Wildcats faced the Cavaliers earlier this season, winning both games by scores of 9-2 and 12-9 in Ellensburg, thanks in large part to Savannah Egbert who went 5-for-6 from the plate, scoring four runs and driving in one. Egbert also picked up five stolen bases, including four in the first game against the Cavaliers, which set a new CWU single game record.
 
Opponent – Western Oregon University
Live Stats and Video – Wildcatssports.com/Live
Location – OSU Softball Complex, Oregon State University
Game Times – April 30 12 p.m. & 2 p.m.
 
Western Oregon went 3-3 in six games last week to keep its GNAC Championships hopes alive. The Wolves split games at Western Washington on Tuesday, losing the opener 13-1 before taking the nightcap 6-1. In Friday's rematch, the Vikings won the opener 6-5 before WOU took a 1-0 win in game two. Western Oregon then split with Simon Fraser on Saturday, losing 4-0 before winning the 8-7.
 
Sophomore Haley Fabian was named GNAC Softball Pitcher of the Week after she picked up all three wins for the Wolves. She allowed eight runs. Six earned, on 18 hits with three walks and 16 strikeouts in 21 innings. She allowed one run on three hits and struck out six in the Wolves' 6-1 win over Western Washington on Friday's and then allowed six hits and a walk in Saturday's 1-0 shutout of the Vikings. Fabian enters the week with 11 wins and a 3.62 earned run average.
 
Western Oregon enters the week with a .311 batting average and a 3.55 earned run average. The Wolves rank 29th in Division II with 0.43 double plays per game and 39th with 0.78 home runs per game.
 
Central Washington swept WOU in their last meeting with a pair of one-run victories, 4-3 and 7-6. Senior Kiana Wood picked up her seventh win of the season in the first game against the Wolves, and added her first save of the season in game two, hurling the final two innings, allowing just one hit.
 
-CWU-