BILLINGS, Mont. – The Montana State University Billings' softball team welcomes Western Oregon University for a Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader Saturday.
The Yellowjackets (7-13, 6-7 GNAC) ride into the matchup with WOU on a three-game win streak, and 3.5 games out of fourth place in the conference standings. MSU Billings has crossed into the second half of the conference schedule, and needs to crack the top four to play in the inaugural GNAC Tournament in Billings in May.
In its last time out, Montana State Billings cruised in a pair of wins over Northwest Nazarene, 13-2 and 18-0, both in five innings last Saturday. The Yellowjackets' won their second and third straight games, and kept NNU winless in Billings all-time (0-20). It was the 12th and 13th consecutive wins for MSUB over the Crusaders.
Aubrey Conceicao went 6-for-7 with 11 RBI in the two wins. The sophomore finished the day with a home run, a triple and three of doubles.
Jessica Campbell (1-3) recorded her first victory on the mound in the first game. She allowed seven hits and two earned runs in the complete game.
Conceicao was named the Red Lion co-Player of the Week Monday for her performance last week. The sophomore had eight hits in 11 at bats and drove in 12 runs as the Yellowjackets won three of four games. Among her hits were two singles, three doubles, one triple and two home runs as she posted a monstrous 1.727 slugging average.
Before MSU Billings' three-game win streak, it had dropped seven straight contests. During that losing streak, the Yellowjackets totaled three runs in seven games. In the last three games, three victories, MSUB has amassed 44 runs.
"Right now the team is playing very well in all aspects of the game," MSUB Head Coach
Lisa Allen said. "We have been working on limiting errors on defense, getting hits in RBI situations and keeping the ball low as a pitching staff this week in order to prepare for Western Oregon."
The Yellowjackets and Western Oregon meet for the 45th and 46th time Saturday. It is the second-most games with an opponent for MSU Billings. Montana State Billings has won 25 of the 44 all-time meetings, but has lost three straight against the Wolves. During the three-game win streak, Western Oregon has outscored MSUB, 12-4. Before the losing streak, MSU Billings won seven straight in the series. The last MSU Billings win in the series was a 5-4 victory in Monmouth on April 20, 2012. The Wolves have lost eight of the 12 meetings in Billings. The first meeting was a 9-0 Western Oregon win in Kirkland, Wash. on March 2, 2001.
Western Oregon enters the week after a split against Western Washington and a split with Simon Fraser. Both doubleheaders were in Monmouth, Ore. The Wolves have won two of their past six games. WOU is 8-2 at home, but 9-14 on the road. Amanda Evola is one of the best hitters in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference and leads Western Oregon with a .381 batting average. She has a .667 slugging percentage and has hit six home runs already this season. Hannah Pomeroy has won nine of the 12 games she has appeared in on the mound. She has a 3.28 ERA.
"Western Oregon is always one of those teams that you have to look out for because if they can get a rally going they can string a few hits together to get ahead in the game," Allen said. "They are a team that never gives up until the last out is made."
The last time the teams met, Western Oregon picked up a pair of victories at home over Montana State University Billings on March 8, 6-0 and 1-0. The wins were the third and fourth straight for the Wolves. Hannah Pomeroy and Jourdan Williams recorded the shutout victories for WOU. Pomeroy was a force at the plate as well, adding two home runs, including a grand slam. Montana State Billings finished with no errors in either game, but was outhit 9-5.
The doubleheader has a first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. Mountain Time. There will be live stats from Bjorgum Field on MSUBSports.com. Admission is five dollars for general public, three dollars for seniors 65 and over, three dollars for students in seventh through 12th grades, and three dollars for MSUB faculty and staff. MSU Billings students with current I.D., kindergarten through sixth-grade students, and preschool age children are all admitted free.
"We hope to see more fans out this weekend since the weather is supposed to be warmer and we could use the support in helping us achieve two wins," Allen said.
