MONMOUTH, Ore. – Anna Kasner threw another complete-game gem and Brooke Fesenbek hit a go-ahead 2-run home run in the 6^th inning to lift Western Washington University to the 2021 Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships title Saturday afternoon at WOU Softball Field.
 
The Vikings – and Kasner – made a perfect 3-0 run through the postseason tournament to claim the second GNAC Tournament title in program history, both coming in the last four years. WWU has now won four consecutive GNAC Championships games after also going 3-0 during the 2017 season. Western receives an automatic bid to the NCAA II West Regional, which will feature six teams May 19-21 in Irvine, California. This will mark the Vikings fifth trip to the NCAA postseason.
 
Kasner improved to 3-0 in the tournament (13-3 on the season) and 6-0 during her career in the GNAC Championships, allowing one run on four hits with 14 strikeouts in the complete-game victory. Over the last three days, Kasner recorded 38 strikeouts and allowed just one run in 19.0 innings, which included a 5-inning no-hitter yesterday vs. NNU. The conference and WWU all-time strikeout leader was crowned the GNAC Tournament MVP for the second time in her career.
 
Tied 1-1, senior right fielder Mackenzie Palmer led off the bottom of the 6^th inning with an infield single and advanced into scoring position on a throwing error. After a sharp groundout by junior shortstop Tatum Dow moved Palmer to third base, Fesenbek delivered the biggest hit of her career with a tape-measure 2-run home run off GNAC Pitcher of the Year Sydney Booth on a 1-0 count.
 
Kasner allowed a leadoff double in the top of the 7^th inning, but retired the next three,  struck out Abigail Gagnon and Madison Strickler for her 13^th and 14^th strikeouts of the game to seal the tournament title for the Vikings.
 
The Nighthawks struck first in the top of the 2^nd inning snapping Kasner's 22.0 consecutive innings scoreless streak in the GNAC Championships (dating back to her freshman season) when left fielder Mai McNicoll hit a one-out home run over the left-center field fence.
 
WWU had a scoring chance in the bottom of the 3^rd inning putting runners on 1^st and 3^rd with no outs. Kasner led off with a double to left field and first baseman Dakota Brooks reached on a bunt single. But Booth wiggled out of the jam to preserve the 1-0 NNU lead.
 
The Vikings pulled even in the bottom of the 4^th inning with a single tally. Dow drew a leadoff walk and moved into scoring position on a double to right-center field by junior center fielder Lauren Lo. Junior left fielder Rylie Wales executed a perfect safety squeeze bunt to score Dow with the tying run.
 
Lo finished the game 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles and batted .444 (4-for-9) with three doubles and a home run in the tournament. Palmer went 1-for-3, and recorded a hit in each tournament game to bat .500 (5-for-10).
 
McNicoll went 2-for-2 with a double and home run to account for two of NNU's four hits off Kasner. Booth suffered just her third loss of the season falling to 15-3 overall, recording seven strikeouts in her 6.0-inning complete game.
 
The Vikings won their fourth consecutive game to improve to 23-12 overall and move on to the NCAA II West Regional in two weeks. WWU finished the GNAC tournament outscoring its opponents 13-1, with a 1-0 win over Saint Martin's and a pair of victories over the regular-season champion Nighthawks (9-0 and 3-1).
 

WWU 3, NNU 1   (May 8, 2021 at Monmouth, OR) – GNAC Championships G#6
Score by Innings	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	-	R	H	E	LOB	Updated Record
Northwest Nazarene	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	-	1	4	1	4	30-12
Western Washington	0	0	0	1	0	2	x	-	3	6	0	4	23-12
NNU – Booth and Genuardi
WWU – Kasner and Hardy
Win: Kasner (13-3)       Save: None      Loss: Booth (15-3) WWU HR: Fesenbek (2)      NNU HR: McNicoll (12) Time of Game: 1:48

Anna Kasner improved to 6-0 all-time in GNAC Championships play (3-0 during this year's tournament), recording 61 strikeouts in 38.2 innings pitched over six appearances (5 starts) in the conference tournament during her career. As a freshman in 2017, she earned GNAC Tournament MVP honors going 3-0, 0.00 ERA with 23 strikeouts in 3 G/2 GS. During her GNAC Championships career she allowed only one earned run (2 runs total) for a 0.18 ERA. In three starts in the 2021 tournament, Kasner went 3-0, allowing only five hits and recorded 38 strikeouts in 19.0 innings. Here is a look at Kasner's game-by-game performance in the GNAC Championships:
    WWU has won two of the last four GNAC Championship Tournaments (2017 & 2021) and improved to 8-4 all-time in GNAC Championships play (4^th tournament appearance). The Vikings have now won six consecutive GNAC Tournament games after winning the 2017 tournament with a perfect 3-0 record during its last postseason appearance. The Vikings also qualified for the conference tournament in 2014 and 2015, including playing in the championship game in 2015.

SB🥎 | AN UNSCHEDULED SPACE LAUCH FROM OREGON AS BROOK FESENBEK LAUNCHES AND ABSOLUTE ROCKET INTO SPACE. 3-1 VIKINGS!!

NNU | 1
WWU | 3
⬇️6

📺 https://t.co/xqN77YSOc1
📊 https://t.co/wrHNf7yoAm pic.twitter.com/GUMJBjeoql
— WWU Athletics (@WWUAthletics) May 8, 2021
  

  WWU will find out it seed for the six-team NCAA Division II West Regional on Sunday, May 16. The 2021 NCAA II West Regional will be played May 19-21 at Eagle Field in Irvine, California, with Concordia-Irvine serving as the regional host. WWU also made NCAA regional appearances in 2003, 2007, 2011 and most recently in 2017.
  Anna Kasner recorded 14 strikeouts in Saturday's GNAC Championships Final, finishing the tournament with 38 strikeouts in three starts (12 – 12 – 14). The senior now has 20 career starts with double-digits in strikeouts and has increased her WWU and GNAC career strikeout record to 551.
    Up-to-date season information, including season statistics, bios, roster, schedule and historical information can be viewed online at WWUVikings.com/Softball. WWU Softball also has a strong social media presence on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook, so give them a follow!
  The WWU softball program is in its 29^th season in 2021, with the Vikings posting a winning record 18 times. WWU won the 1998 NAIA National Championship in only its sixth season to record the school's first ever team national title and has now made five trips to the NCAA Division II Regional Championships. Over the last six seasons (since 2014), the Vikings are 195-146 and have won two of the last four GNAC Tournament titles (2017 & 2019). Head coach Sheryl Gilmore is in her third season at the helm of the program in 2020 after leading WWU to 27 wins, tied for the 10^th-most in program history, in her first campaign in 2019 and a 60-42 overall record (.588).