NAMPA, Idaho (Mar. 8) – The Central Washington University softball team (9-4, 2-0) swept a pair of games from Northwest Nazarene University (10-8, 0-2) by scores of 2-1 and 9-6.
 
Lexie Strasser (5-3) got the nod in game one and pitched a complete game.  The right-hander allowed six hits and struck out four hitters.  Jordan Adams started in the circle for the Nighthawks, putting together a nearly identical line to Strasser.  In six innings Adams struck out four, and allowed just two runs, on six hits. 
 
Strasser and Adams held both offenses quiet through the first three and a half innings.  The Wildcats struck first on a solo homerun from Julia Reuble. 
 
Northwest Nazarene wasted no time levelling the score at 1-1.  A one-out triple from Madi Strickler put the tying run on third.  Anna Olson grounded out to short, allowing Strickler to cash in the tying run. 
 
The Crimson and Black responded in the bottom half of the fifth.  Rachael Johnson singled up the middle with one out.  After a fly out, Katie Kastning tripled down the left field line, bringing Johnson around from first, and giving Central a 2-1 lead. 
 
Strasser worked her way through the final two innings, stranding the tying run on base twice. 
 
Samantha Stanfield got the call in the back end of the doubleheader for the Wildcats, while Rylee Thomas started for the Nighthawks. 
 
Unlike the first game, both offenses went to work in the first inning.  The Nighthawks pushed two runs across in the first inning.  Kylie Orr hit a deep foul fly ball for a sacrifice fly, before Shelbie Martinez singled home a run for a 2-0 lead. 
 
Teresa Moyle erased the two-run deficit and gave the Crimson and Black a one-run advantage in the bottom of the first with a three-run blast.
 
The bottom of the third inning saw four runs cross the plate for the Wildcats.  Bethany Balucan singled home a run.  A bases loaded walk from Alycia Bannan brought another run across.  Savannah Egbert then grounded out to first, allowing Sydney Brown to score.
 
Northwest Nazarene plated a run in the top of the fourth inning with a two-out single, bringing the score to 7-3. 
 
Central Washington wasn't done, however.  In the bottom of the fourth inning the Wildcats struck for a pair of runs.  Brown singled home Moyle, before a wild pitch allowed Kayla Smith to score for a 9-3 advantage.
 
Stanfield found herself in a minor jam in the top of the fifth.  After a lead-off next two hitters reached, but she forced Abigail Otto to roll a grounder to short.  Brown fielded it cleanly and forced Orr out at third for the inning's second out.  Stanfield then got Martinez to roll a grounder to Brown at short for the inning's third out. 
 
The Nighthawks managed to chase Stanfield from the game in the top of the sixth, after a three-run homerun from Anna Williams.  The shot cut the Wildcats' lead to 9-6.
 
Strasser came on in relief and quelled the growing offensive storm from the Nighthawks, earning her second save of the season.   She set down the side on strikes in the top of the seventh.
 
"Really proud of our entire team," CWU Head Coach Mike Larabee said.  "We've been in the field house now for two weeks.  They've been grinding it out and working hard in a situation that isn't ideal.  They were rewarded today with the outcome.  Pitching was solid today, we told our staff everyone has a hole in their swing.  We'll identify it and they'll attack it.  It was nice to see some balls leave the yard today.  We are always taking about chasing perfection and we definitely caught excellence today.  They'll [NNU] be ready tomorrow, they're a great program, well-coached, we need to be ready for the challenge."
 
The Wildcats are back in action tomorrow (Mar. 9) for another doubleheader against NNU.  First pitch is slated for 11:00 a.m. PT.