Box Score 1 | Box Score 2

MOUNT VERNON, Wash. – The Montana State University Billings softball team's bats were red-hot Wednesday evening as the Yellowjackets recorded 26 total runs and 31 hits in their Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader with Western Washington University. After having to wait several hours to start the game, the Yellowjackets swarmed all over the Vikings with a 15-1, five-inning win in the first game before earning an 11-3 win in game-two.
 
After out-scoring the Vikings 34-10 over the four-game stretch, MSUB improves to 9-4 overall and 6-2 in the conference while Western Washington falls to 3-15 overall and 1-7 in the league.
 
“The girls came out ready to play today,” said head coach Lisa Allen. “We started strong offensively in the first inning and continued it throughout the evening. Our hitters did a wonderful job of making the needed adjustments to their pitching. Kasie Conder did a great job in the first game keeping the batter guessing and Jessica Campbell and Amanda Todd did an amazing job in the second game to limit base runners.”
 
Between the two games, designated player Annaleisha Parlsey went 6-for-6 at the plate with seven total RBIs and three runs scored including a home run. Right fielder Rose Harrington went 6-for-9 and second baseman Jenna VanEykeren went 6-for-8 with both scoring four runs in the doubleheader with Harrington batting in three runs and VanEykeren bringing home four.
 
The Yellowjackets' 15 runs in game-one matches the most runs given up by WWU. The mark was last achieved by Pacific Lutheran University in 1994 when WWU was a member of the NAIA.
 
MSUB scored three runs in the opening inning, five in the second and their final seven in the third inning while WWU's lone run came in the bottom of the second inning.
 
The Yellowjackets out-hit the Vikings 14-5 through the five innings, including reining GNAC Player of the Week Meg Harasymczuk knocking her fifth home run of the season.
 
Catcher Nicole Wilkerson and first baseman Emily Osborn were both perfect at the plate in the first game and recorded two RBIs each. Osborn went 2-for-2 with three runs scored while Wilkerson went 3-for-3 with two runs scored.
 
VanEykeren, the Yellowjackets lone four-year senior, went 3-for-4 at the plate with four RBIs and two runs scored.
 
Kasie Conder pitched all five innings for the Yellowjackets, striking out two Vikings, to record the win and improve to 3-0 on the season while Jenna DeRosier pitched just two innings but gave up 12 earned runs to fall to 1-6 for the year.
 
The second game progressed a little more even-keeled through the first five innings as Western Washington was able to match MSUB tit-for-tat, but the Yellowjackets' bats heated back up in the sixth inning and MSUB put the game away for good with seven runs over the final two frames.
 
The Yellowjackets scored four runs, including three off a home run by Parsley, in the sixth inning and then tacked on three more runs in the seventh frame, out-hitting the Vikings 17-9 in the second game.
 
Parsley led the way at the plate in game-two with a 3-for-3 performance that included batting five runs in and scoring one herself. Harrington went 4-for-5 in game two with a pair of RBIs and a run scored while VanEykeren went 3-for-4 with two runs scored.
 
Jessica Campbell and Amanda Todd combined to strike out 13 batters, giving up just three earned runs. Todd earned the win in the circle for game two to improve to 1-1 after fanning nine Vikings while Janelle Kasch went all seven innings, striking out just three batters to suffer the loss and fall to 0-5.
 
The Yellowjackets will now travel a short distance down the Interstate 5 to Lacey, Wash. where they will look to face-off against the Saints of Saint Martin's University in a pair of GNAC doubleheaders. First pitch of game-one is slated for Saturday, March 10 at 1 p.m. Pacific time.