It's not every year that the postseason field is complete the day before the big tournament, but the last three years haven't been normal.
 
Linfield baseball enters the 2022 Northwest Conference Tournament as the No. 2 seed and will play third-seeded George Fox in the first round. First pitch is set for 3 p.m. on Friday at Pacific University's Chuck Bafaro Stadium. Top-seeded and host Pacific will play No. 4 Pacific Lutheran at noon to open the tourney.
 
HOW THEY GOT HERE
In a win-and-in series finale against Pacific Lutheran, the Wildcats stunned the Lutes with a 5-1 win in Tacoma to clinch a NWC Tournament berth for the first time since 2018. With a Pacific loss to George Fox later that afternoon, Linfield shocked the conference and claimed a share of the NWC regular season championship with the Boxers. It's the program's first regular season title since 2017.
 
The 'Cats finished tied atop the NWC standings under third-year head coach Dan Spencer despite being picked eighth in the NWC Preseason Coaches Poll. Pacific earned the top spot in the tournament and hosting rights with a head-to-head tiebreaker over the 'Cats after taking two of three games on March 26-27 in McMinnville.
 
LINFIELD AT A GLANCE 
The Wildcats have won three straight NWC series and seven of their last 10 games. They have a better record on the road (10-6) than at home (8-9). The 'Cats are batting .270 as a team and own a 4.53 ERA and .970 fielding percentage.
 
Branden Pasion was named the NWC Position Student-Athlete of the Week on Monday, making him the first Linfield player to earn the award since 2018. He batted .583 with four doubles and four RBI against the Lutes, capped by a 3-for-5 performance with three RBI doubles in the finale. He leads the 'Cats with a .333 batting average, .444 on-base percentage, .421 slugging percentage and 10 doubles.
 
Tanner Jacques is also batting above .300 with a .303 batting average. He has started in all 33 games at shortstop for the 'Cats, finishing the regular season with totals of 43 hits, 29 runs and 29 RBI, all of which are team highs. Daniel Kahn is batting .295 and is tied for the team lead with Pasion with 10 doubles. Mike LaVigne has started in all but one game in his sophomore campaign and has 39 hits and 23 runs while Garrett Moen has locked down the center field position defensively.
 
Led by Colton Meyer and Skyler Manelski, the Linfield bullpen has been a strong suit. Meyer is arguably the strongest pitcher in the NWC. The hard-throwing lefty is 4-0 on the season with six saves, 46 strikeouts and a 1.54 ERA in 17 relief appearances. Manelski is 3-0 with a 1.77 ERA in a team-leading 18 appearances. Jackson Koons leads the starting rotation with a 3.20 ERA while fellow lefty John Over sits at 4.30. Andrew Del Biaggio leads the 'Cats with 50 Ks after fanning six batters in a seven-inning, two-hit outing in Game 2 against Pacific Lutheran.
 
HISTORY
The Wildcats have won three of four meetings with George Fox in 2022 to take a 57-56 lead over their Yamhill County rivals. All four games were decided by three or less runs. The 'Cats are averaging 6.07 runs per game against the Bruins. Their longest winning streak against the Bruins was six straight victories between the 2016 and 2017 seasons.
 
Linfield leads the all-time series with Pacific at 146-48. The mark includes a 66-27 away record. The 'Cats won 16 straight games between 2004 and 2009, but the Boxers have won 11 of the last 14 meetings dating back to the 2019 season.
 
Linfield and Pacific Lutheran have met 171 times. The 'Cats lead the series at 113-58. The 'Cats are averaging 5.87 runs per game. The Lutes were on a five-game win streak in the series, but the 'Cats are fresh off back-to-back wins last week.