Wildcat Roundup: Softball, Baseball lead NWC; golf seeks DIII championship berth

Softball

Catball has been at an all-time high, currently holding onto a 20-game win streak with its last loss coming on March 8 at George Fox.

Linfield (26-2, 14-2) was ranked third in the most recent National Fastpitch Coaches Association Top 25 poll and showcased its speed with 27 stolen bases in 28 attempts in a recent series sweep of Pacific University.

The ‘Cats take their NWC leading offense (.352 team batting average) and pitching (2.27 team ERA) into a home series with Lewis and Clark University this Saturday, which begins at noon at Del Smith Stadium, with Sunday's doubleheader getting underway at 11 a.m.

The squad has been led by junior Meara Sain and senior Ashlyn Aven. Sain leads the NWC in batting average (.484) and doubles (17), while Aven is top in slugging (.989), OPS (1.461), RBI (53) and home runs (14).

In the circle, junior Tyler McNeley is 14-1 with a 1.73 ERA and 94 strikeouts over 97 innings pitched.

Baseball

The Wildcats (18-9, 10-2) have been rolling of late, going 6-2 over their last eight games, including a recent three-game sweep of Pacific Lutheran University.

Linfield currently holds a small lead for the No. 1 spot in the Northwest Conference over Whitworth (16-13, 11-3) and is set to take on the Pirates for a three-game set in Spokane beginning Saturday at 12 p.m.

Offense has been of little issue, as the ‘Cats have scored seven runs in four of their last eight. Linfield’s 4.78 earned run average is also the best in the conference. The staff has been led by junior right-hander Matthew Tacheny, whose 3.63 ERA (3rd) and .257 batting average against (6th) are among the NWC’s best in 44 1/3 innings pitched.

Fellow junior Zack Hampson has been nails out of the bullpen, leading the NWC in wins (6) and saves (4) while owning a 2.42 ERA in 22 innings pitched.

Golf

Junior Douglas Bailey and Linfield men's golf continued their record-setting spring season by winning their fourth consecutive team title and Bailey's second medalist honor on Sunday at the NWC Spring Classic at Oakbrook Golf Club in Tacoma.

For Bailey, it's his second win of the season and third of his career, moving him into third in career wins in program history (3).

With one NWC-sanctioned tournament left to play, men's golf boasts a cumulative one-stroke lead on Whitman and three strokes on Willamette. The final tournament of the season essentially serves as a winner-take-all for the three teams hoping to earn the automatic qualifier into the NCAA Division III Championships.

The Wildcats aim to continue their momentum into next weekend's Wildcat Invite at Michelbook Country Club, teeing up round one on Saturday.

Linfield’s women finished eighth as a team at the NWC Spring Classic and will join the action at Michelbook on Sunday and Monday.

Womens Lacrosse

Wildcats lacrosse (5-6, 3-0) remained perfect in NWC play with two conference wins at home last weekend, 18-4 over PLU and 17-2 over Puget Sound.

Senior midfielder Gabby Crist has led the charge, as she is third in the NWC in goals (33) and eighth in assists (14). Crist averages a conference-high 7.27 shots per game.

The squad makes a trip to Whitman on Saturday and Whitworth on Sunday, while sitting at third in the conference rankings behind George Fox University and Lewis and Clark.

Tennis

Linfield’s men's tennis team (5-13, 5-7) suffered a tight 4-3 loss to Pacific last weekend and wraps up the regular season this weekend in two pivotal matches.

The 'Cats host cross-county rival George Fox on Linfield's Senior Day on April 11, looking for the program's first season sweep of the Bruins since 2010, before visiting Lewis and Clark the following day in Portland.

Linfield will need to win both matches and see Pacific lose their final two matches to clinch a spot in the conference tournament.

The young women’s team (1-16, 1-11) has continued to struggle, but has fought valiantly and hopes to spoil the party of conference foes as they end the regular season with a visit to George Fox on Saturday before ending the season at home, hosting Lewis and Clark the following day.

Track and Field

If a personal best was to be had, a Wildcat likely found it on Saturday as 17 athletes hit new PR marks at the Jenn Boyman Memorial Invite on Saturday at Maxwell Field.

Included was freshman Isabella Grutsch, who placed third and eighth, respectively, in the girls' 100-meter hurdles and long jump with bests of 14.80 and 17-06.25. Fellow freshman also excelled in the long jump, placing third with a best of 17-09.50.

Though not a PR, freshman Sage Cramp won the pole vault for Linfield by clearing 11-09.00.

In the men's discus, freshman Hudson Holzhauer (133-08, 9th), sophomore Payton Sorenson (118-08, 24th) and freshman Jacob Dillon (90-10, 44th) unleashed a slew of personal bests in their appearances.

Kiyan Vrell, a ‘Cats freshman and 2025 Amity graduate, did not PR, but placed 23rd in the discus (118-09), 17th in the hammer throw (131-02) and fifth in the javelin (184-00). Mac alumnus Mya Budzik ran the 10,000-meter for Linfield, placing 14th with a time of 45:11.81.

The Wildcats travel to Monmouth on Friday and Saturday to compete in the John Knight Twilight meet hosted by Western Oregon University.

Article written with the assistance of Chase Fisk and Linfield Sports Communication.