For the first time since 2015 and the third time in program history, the Saint Martin’s Saints are regular season champions of the GNAC.
The Saints clinched the top seed in the GNAC Tournament with a sweep of Simon Fraser this weekend, capping off the regular season with a 4-1 win in the first game of a double-header Saturday and a 5-1 victory in the second contest.
Bridget Johnson pitched a complete game in the opener, a game that saw Simon Fraser score first on a Cassidy Affeldt solo home run in the second inning. Saint Martin’s took the lead in the fifth with a two-run double by Heather Ebner and an RBI double by Taylor Orgeles. In the sixth, Jennessy Lopez plated a runner after reaching on an error.
Johnson allowed one run on five hits and two walks, striking out one batter in her 12th victory of the season.
In game two, Ebner remained hot at the plate, singling home Haley Agena in the first inning, and Elissa Dewees’ sacrifice fly in the second inning made it 2-0. Lopez picked up her seventh and eighth hits of the four-game series, both driving in runs. Olivianna Trinidad also recorded an RBI in the fourth.
The pitching quartet of Kayla Vaughan, Heidi Leitz, Keagan Norfleet and Amanda Peterson held the Red Leafs to just three hits. The bullpen retired the final eight batters of the game.
Saint Martin’s finishes the regular season with a 33-17 record and 18-6 mark in GNAC play. The Saints will face Simon Fraser, the No. 4 seed in the GNAC Tournament, on May 7 in the first round in Ellensburg.
