MONMOUTH, Ore. – The Central Washington softball team extended its winning streak to nine games with a 7-1 win over Western Oregon University (13-11, 3-4 GNAC) Sunday afternoon to improve to 13-4 on the season and a perfect 7-0 in Great Northwest Athletic Conference play.
 
Game two was halted due to rain in the second inning with the Wildcats trailing 4-0.  The game will likely resume on Mar. 30 when WOU travels to Ellensburg for a doubleheader.
 
Lexie Strasser was masterful for the fourth-straight outing picking up her sixth win of the season to move to 6-3.  She allowed six hits over seven innings of work and struck out three batters.
 
The game was knotted at 0-0 heading into the third inning, but the CWU offense did not let that last, scoring five in the frame to take a commanding lead.  A one-out walk by Bethany Balucan got things rolling for the Wildcats in the third and Rachael Johnson, Savannah Egbert, and Celine Fowler followed with three straight single, with Egbert picking up a RBI in the process.  Alycia Bannan put a stamp on the inning with a double to left field that cleared the loaded bases.  Katie Kastning added the Wildcats fifth and final hit of the inning with a two-out single to left plating Bannan from third.
 
Central Washington added two more runs in the fourth inning to take a 7-0 lead.  Taelor Griffin led off with single and Balucan followed suit to give CWU two runners with no outs.  Two batters later, Egbert lined a double down the right field line that scored Balucan and Sydney Brown who pinch ran for Griffin.
 
Western Oregon's lone run came in the bottom half of the fourth on a sacrifice fly by Zoe Clark.
 
The Wildcats will next take its streak on the road where they play nine games in five games.  Central heading Turlock, Calif. to play six games in the Tournament of Champions from Mar. 23-25.  Prior to the tournament, the Wildcats will play a single with Stanislaus State on Mar. 21 followed by a doubleheader with Cal Baptist on Mar. 22.