McMINNVILLE, Ore. – Finding just enough of an opening between rain showers, Linfield put the finishing touches on a four-game Northwest Conference sweep of Lewis & Clark Monday evening at Del Smith Stadium.
The Wildcats won the opener easily, 8-0 in five innings, then had to scratch and claw to fend off a furious comeback effort in extra innings by the Pioneers in a 10-9 donnybrook. Linfield pushed its season record to 8-2 and 4-0 in conference play. Lewis & Clark saw its record settle at 6-6, 0-4 in the NWC.
Katie Phillips pounded four hits,
Kaili Saathoff and
Cydney Hess accounted for three more, contributed three hits across the 10 inning of play.
GAME 1: Linfield 8, Lewis & Clark 0, 5 innings
Saathoff, Phillips and Hess smacked two hits a piece, and
Tayah Kelley held L&C to three total hits, leading the Wildcats to a comfortable victory in five inning opener. The teams were forced to wait nearly two hours beyond their scheduled 3 p.m. start time as rain buffeted the area before subsiding.
Kelley raised her season record to 5-0 with a five-strikeout effort. She did walk four batters but limited the collateral damage, posting her second shutout of the 2023 season.
Pioneers starter Maggie O'Leary suffered her second defeat of the series, giving up five hits and five earned runs in two innings of action.
After two scoreless innings, the Wildcats rolled up five runs in the third, highlighted by RBIs from Saathoff, Phillips and Hess. Linfield polished off the run-rule shortened game with Hess's RBI single to center field, sending Phillips across the plate with the winning run.
GAME 2: Linfield 10, Lewis & Clark 9, 10 innings
Leading 9-0 in the fourth inning, the 'Cats looked well on their way to another lopsided victory. But Lewis & Clark had other ideas, erupting for eight runs in the top of the fifth to pull within one run, 9-8. The Wildcats finally ended the three hour, five-minute marathon on a solo home run by
Brynn Nelson that sailed just inside the left-field foul pole.
Phillips got the Wildcats on the scoreboard in the first inning with a two-run double. Hess then delivered a ground-out RBI to push the Wildcats' early lead to 3-0.
Lewis & Clark threatened to score in the second inning, but the Wildcats held the Pioneers at bay. Sam Gildersle doubled to right field, then stole third base. With two outs, Lacey Marglin grounded out to cap the inning, the Wildcats held firm to their three-run lead.
Linfield plated three more runs in the second.
Baily Paul drove in a run with a single to center field before the 'Cats cashed in another run when pinch runner
Tiani Wayton scored on an infield error. Saathoff then added to her hits total with a single to score Paul from third base.
Ashley Sutton made the score 7-0 with a towering solo home run over the left-field wall in the third. Hess and
Claire Seats added RBIs in the fourth off pitches from Pioneers reliever Cassidy Crusberg.
Haphazard defense by Linfield plus timely hitting enabled Lewis & Clark to push across eight runs in the top of the fifth inning. The scoring spree was highlighted by a grand slam home run by Riley Anderson.
Wildcats starter
Tyler Warden held the Pioneers in check for the better part of four innings before the wheels began to come off.
Trailing 9-8 in the sixth, the Pioneers loading the bases with two outs, but Katie Ingersoll's fly ball to left field settled into the glove of Phillips to retire the side.
In the top of the seventh, Emily Patton sent a bloop single to center field, allowing Marglin to score the tying run from second.
Kelley, who entered the game as the Wildcats' third relief pitcher, emerged as the winning pitcher. She struck out six and gave up three hits across the final 4 1/3 innings.
Both teams generated 13 hits in the game, with 10 of Lewis & Clark's knocks coming during the final four frames.
Nelson finished with three hits while Phillips contributed two.
NEXT
Linfield hosts Willamette in a rescheduled NWC doubleheader Wednesday at 4 p.m.
