SPOKANE, Wash. – The Whitworth University softball team picked up a pair of Northwest Conference wins over Puget Sound at Diana Marks Field on Saturday.

The Pirates improve to 16-6 on the season, with a 9-3 NWC record. The Loggers fall to 0-11 overall, with a matching 0-11 record in the NWC.

Game 1 – Whitworth 9, Puget Sound 1 (6 innings)
Sophomores Megan John and Alyssa Hall gave the Pirates an early 2-0 lead after the first inning in the opening game. Puget Sound was able to cut the lead in half in the top of the second as Rita McCreesh's double to left field sent Marissa Jeffers home. Freshman pitcher Madi Perez threw three innings without allowing a hit to keep it a 2-1 game in Whitworth's favor.

Junior Sacha Clow was hit by a pitch in the leadoff position in the bottom of the fifth. With the bases loaded, junior Taylor Gilbert drilled a triple to right field, scoring Clow, Hall and John and putting the Pirates up 5-1. After sophomore pinch runner M'Liss Powles scored to make it a 6-1 game, junior Peyton McMahon tripled to right center and put another Pirate run on the scoreboard.

In the top of the sixth, Taylor Jones tripled down the left field line, but back-to-back fielder's choice outs got the Pirates out of the inning without any damage. Whitworth hit consecutive singles in the bottom of the inning to put Clow and senior Caylan Haehl on first and second when John was walked to load the bases. Freshman pinch hitter Nikki Olsen's groundout to the short stop allowed Clow to score, making it 8-1. Taylor Gilbert singled to center field to score Haehl and give Whitworth a 9-1 win.

Taylor Gilbert went 2-4 with four runs batted in. Freshman Shannon Wessel was 2-3 with two RBI at the plate.

Madi Perez (8-3) allowed one run on just two hits with three walks and three strikeouts in six innings of work. Megan Campbell (0-6) gave up nine runs on 10 hits with four walks and three strikeouts in 5.1 innings in the circle.

Game 2 – Whitworth 6, Puget Sound 2
The Pirates matched game one's first inning with a pair of runs to jump out to an early 2-0 lead. The Pirates combined two hits with a Puget Sound error to score both senior Makenzie Hope and Shannon Wessel.

Freshman Tessa Matthews tripled to right field in the bottom of the third inning and scored on a bunt from Hope. With runners in scoring position, senior Julia Johnson doubled to right field, and with two runs scored, Whitworth took a 5-0 lead into the fourth inning. After an error allowed Taylor Jones to score for UPS, Jenica Holt popped up to Peyton McMahon in left field. McMahon threw a bullet to sophomore catcher Lyss Martinez, who tagged Rita McCreesh at home and kept the Loggers from scoring another run in the inning.

Whitworth was able to get one more run on the board in the bottom of the fifth to take a 6-1 lead heading into the final inning. A Logger single, hit batter and a walk loaded the bases for Lisa Colombo with two outs in the top of the inning. Colombo singled up the middle to push one run across for the Loggers, but the Pirates were able to get Jaci Young to pop up for the third out and strand three base runners.

Julia Johnson was 1-3 with three RBI in the game. Shannon Wessel was 1-1 with an RBI and two runs scored for the Pirates.

Freshman Makayla Lefever (3-1) threw a no-hitter with a strikeout in 3.1 innings of work to earn the win. Jaci Young (0-5) allowed five earned runs on six hits with two walks and four strikeouts in six innings in the circle.

Whitworth and Puget Sound will conclude the four game series with a pair of games on Sunday. First pitch for the first game is set for 12:00 p.m.