Setting the Scene: Pacific Lutheran gets to squeeze in a quick doubleheader at home today against in-state rival Whitworth after having the weekend series against Lewis & Clark was postponed due to illnesses on the Pioneer team.
Series History: The Lutes and Pirates have battled 100 times on the diamond since the series began in 1998 with PLU enjoying a 61-39 all-time edge. The two programs battled five times last spring with PLU’s winning four of those encounters, including a 4-1 victory at the NWC Tournament.
About the Lutes: PLU (15-5, 7-1 NWC) leads the conference in wins this season after picking up three last weekend in Salem, Oregon. The Lutes smashed Willamette 14-1 in the series opener in a mercy-rule win that saw Casey Wright belt a three-run home run and Cassidy Conrad strike out five. Willamette nipped the Lutes 9-6 in game two but it was all PLU on Sunday, winning 8-1 and 14-9.
PLU's potent offense continued to produce, generating 42 runs over the course of the weekend.
On Monday the NWC announced its weekly award winners with Cassidy Conrad earning NWC Pitcher of the Week and Paola Garcia landing NWC Hitter of the Week.
Conrad started three of the four games and collected 10 strikeouts. Paola Garcia was on fire at the plate, boasting a .533 batting average with five RBIs and seven runs scored.
Erin McGrath leads the Lutes with a .444 batting average with 19 RBIs, 15 extra base hits, and 21 runs scored. Rylie Wada is hitting at a .442 clip while Garcia boasts a .380 average with 10 extra base hits and 14 RBIs. Kennedy Kila has a team-high 22 RBIs for the high-octane Lutes with eight doubles and five round-trippers. As a team, the Lutes have cranked out 27 home runs in the opening 20 games of the year.
In the circle, Conrad is the workhorse, owning a 7-1 record with 37 strikeouts and seven complete games. Amaya Smith has a 1.91 earned run average in seven appearances while Kila has 21 punch outs in 26 2/3 innings of action.
Home Sweet Home: The Lutes have turned PLU Field into a daunting venue for opposing team's owning a 15-3 record at home over the past two seasons, including a perfect 4-0 record this spring.
About the Pirates: Whitworth (7-6, 4-3 NWC) remains in Tacoma after splitting a four-game series against Puget Sound. The Pirates steamrolled the Loggers 9-1 in the series opener on Saturday but UPS took game two by a 7-4 scoreline. Whitworth secured another mercy rule win to open Sunday, squashing Puget Sound 10-0 but stumbled 8-6 in the series finale.
Mattea Nelson leads the team at the dish with a .409 batting average while Heather Menzer has a team-leading 15 RBIs. Inside the circle, Corinne Vasiloff leads the Pirates in innings pitched (47), ERA (2.09), complete games (7), and strikeouts (36).
Attaway Lutes!
Congrats to Shannon Cotton (Fritzke), Melissa Korb, and the 2012 National Championship winning softball team on earning induction into the PLU Athletics Hall of Fame on Saturday. Cotton (pictured top left) and Korb (Pictured top middle) were battery mates for the Lutes from 1999-2002, helping PLU win four straight league titles and place fourth in the nation in 2002. The 2012 Lutes won the program's fourth national title and to date, only NCAA Division III title.
NWC Coaches' Poll
The Pacific Lutheran University softball team is projected to finish third in the Northwest Conference standings in 2023 according to the NWC's annual coaches' poll released on Jan. 31.
The Lutes (30-14 overall, 20-8 NWC in 2022) garnered 38 points in the poll to place third, finishing four points shy of second ranked George Fox University.
Reigning league champion Linfield University sits atop the rankings with 49 points and seven of the eight first place votes. GFU claimed the remaining first place vote. Whitworth University is fourth with 28 points followed by Lewis & Clark College (26 points), and Pacific University (17 points).
Willamette University is seventh with 16 points while crosstown nemesis University of Puget Sound sits in eighth with eight points.
Trailblazing NIL the D3 Way: PLU Athletics continues to lead the way nationally in Name, Image, and Likeness, unveiling the Luteville Marketplace on August 31 through the department's partnership with Opendorse. Learn more about the deal here: LINK. But don't stay on the sidelines, get involved and connect with PLU student-athletes on the Luteville Marketplace: LINK
The Luteville Marketplace is the first dedicated NIL marketplace in Division III on the Opendorse platform that directly connects student-athletes with fans, supporters, and business partners in an easy to use website.
New Look Lutemobile for 2023
The new Lutemobile is here! During the first week in January, the Lutes' bus partner Bellair Charters, unveiled its newest PLU branded bus as it took the men's and women's hoops teams to Oregon.
Stay connected to your favorite teams by downloading the official mobile app of the Pacific Lutheran University athletic department powered by SIDEARM Sports, available in the Apple App Store and on Google Play.
Featuring real-time news alerts, schedules, exclusive multimedia content, gameday details and more, the new PLU Athletics app is free and compatible with both iOS and Android devices.
To download the app to your smartphone or tablet, visit the Apple App Store (DOWNLOAD LINK) or Google Play (DOWNLOAD LINK) and search for "PLU Athletics."
Next Home Games:
Apr. 7: PLU hosts Pacific (DH) at 12 p.m.
PLU Non-Discrimination Policy: Pacific Lutheran University does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, disability or age in its programs and activities. The following person has been designated to handle inquiries regarding non-discrimination policies: Title IX Coordinator Jennifer Childress-White; 253-535-7361; TitleIX@plu.edu