The Northwestern College softball team swept their fourth straight doubleheader and won their eighth consecutive game as they knocked off Dana, 5-0 and 4-2. The Red Raiders improve to 24-14 overall and more importantly, 14-6 and in third place in the GPAC with four games left to play. Dana falls to 17-16 overall, 13-9 in the GPAC. Both teams have qualified for the eight-team, postseason GPAC tournament which will begin next week.
Lexy Determan pitched a complete-game, three-hit shutout to lead NWC to a 5-0 win in game one. The freshman struck out nine and walked just one as she improved to 16-7 this season. The Red Raiders belted out 11 hits, three by Stacey Godfrey who had an RBI double, and two each by Amy Larson and Lara Vonnahmen. Vonnahmen added two RBIs while Larson scored a pair of runs. Northwestern scored once in the first, two in the third and two more in the sixth inning.
Northwestern scored four run in the bottom of the sixth inning to record a 4-2 come-from-behind win in game two. The Red Raiders trailed 2-0 in the sixth until three straight singles by Sara Curry, Stacey Godfrey and Rachel Harris loaded the bases with no outs. Lara Vonnahmen reached on an error which scored Curry and Lexy Determan followed with an RBI single that tied the game at 2-2. Jessica Hooper capped off the scoring with an RBI single that scored two runs, the later of which scored on an error by the Dana catcher. Offensively, the Red Raiders had eight hits, led by Larson with two and Curry with one and a run scored.
Gavi Burrola pitched the first 5 1/3 innings and gave up five hits and two runs. She struck out four. Determan pitched the final 1 2/3 innings of no-hit ball to pick up the win. She struck out three.
Northwestern will travel to Crete, Neb. to play Doane on Monday, April 28.
2008 media guide
