BELLINGHAM, Wash. – The Western Washington University softball team takes to the road for the penultimate weekend of the 2022 regular season with a four-game series at Western Oregon University.
The Vikings enter the weekend with a 25-18 overall record and are 3rd in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings at 11-5. WWU has won 20 of its last 27 games, going 20-7 since the start of March.
Western is coming off a 2-2 series split at home vs. Central Washington and will play a pair of doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday vs. Western Oregon at WOU Softball Field. All four games in the series will feature a live (and free) webcast and live statistical updates with direct links at wwuvikings.com/Live.
Heading into play on Saturday, the Vikings have a solid hold on one of the top four sports in the GNAC standings, which will determine the field for the conference tournament held May 5-7 at SMU Softball Field in Lacey. WWU is the defending GNAC Tournament champions after winning the title in 2021.
The Vikings two-month surge has been fueled by solid hitting, dominant pitching and near flawless defense to turn a 5-11 start to the season into a current record seven games above the .500 mark. Since March 1 WWU has combined to bat .328 (251-for-766), pitched to a .264 team ERA (68 ER, 180.0 IP) and fielded at a .977 clip making only 17 errors in the 27 games.
Senior Chantelle Shimabukuro leads the Vikings and is 2nd in the GNAC batting .424 (50-for-1118) with a current 30-game on-base streak (recently had 19-game hitting streak snapped). Senior first baseman Dakota Brooks is batting .367 (47-for-128) with a team-best six home runs and 35 RBI and senior shortstop Tatum Dow is hitting .351 (52-for-148) with 12 doubles, three home runs and 22 RBI. Senior center fielder Lauren Lo is also batting .313 (45-for-144) with a team-high 16 multi-hit games.
In the circle, sophomore Sydney Brown leads the staff with a 8-3 record and 2.48 ERA, ranking 3rd in the GNAC in ERA, 1st in opponent batting average (.194) and tied for 8th in strikeouts (68). Senior Kira Doan is 9-7 with a 3.03 ERA and is nearing the all-time WWU top-10 with 230 career strikeouts. Freshman Joie Baker is 8-7, 4.17 ERA in 21 games/14 starts.
THIS WEEK IN WWU SOFTBALL
Here is a look at the Vikings schedule this weekend with the four-game series at Western Oregon in Monmouth, Oregon. All four games in the series will feature a live and free webcast on YouTube and live statistical updates. Please check wwuvikings.com/Live for the up-to-date schedule and live links on how to follow WWU Softball online:
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THIS WEEK IN WWU SOFTBALL
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Saturday, April 23
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Live Coverage
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at Western Oregon » 12 pm (Doubleheader) » Monmouth, OR » WOU Softball Field
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📊 LiveStats 🎥 Webcast
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Sunday, April 24
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Live Coverage
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at Western Oregon » 12 pm (Doubleheader) » Monmouth, OR » WOU Softball Field
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📊 LiveStats 🎥 Webcast
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Here is a look at the GNAC Softball standings heading into this week's schedule of conference games (updated through games of Friday). The top four teams in the conference standings at the end of the regular season will qualify for the 2022 GNAC Championships May 5-7 in Lacey (hosted by Saint Martin's):
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GNAC SOFTBALL
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CONF
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PCT
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OVERALL
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PCT
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HOME
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AWAY
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NEUTRAL
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STREAK
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1.
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Saint Martin's
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15-3
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.833
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27-14
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.659
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15-3
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5-4
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7-7
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Won 8
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2.
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Northwest Nazarene
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13-5
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.722
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25-17
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.595
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9-2
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11-7
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5-8
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Lost 2
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3.
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Western Washington
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11-5
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.688
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25-18
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.581
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8-4
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12-5
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5-9
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Won 2
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4.
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Central Washington
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9-11
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.450
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18-22
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.450
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9-8
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5-8
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4-6
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Lost 2
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5.
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Simon Fraser
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6-10
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.375
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15-17
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.469
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5-3
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3-10
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7-4
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Lost 1
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6.
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Western Oregon
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4-12
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.250
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19-23
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.452
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10-4
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3-13
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6-6
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Lost 5
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7.
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Montana State Billings
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4-16
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.200
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11-32
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.256
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0-8
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5-8
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6-16
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Lost 8
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The Vikings and Wolves met earlier this season in a "non-conference" doubleheader March 4 in Bellingham, with WWU winning both games 5-3 and 8-0. WWU leads the all-time series vs. WOU 74-45, including a 6-1 record in the last seven games dating back to the 2019 season. The Vikings hold a 33-19 lead in the series in games played in Monmouth and 58-38 mark in conference games.
Chantelle Shimabukuro (current 30-game streak) and Tatum Dow (20-game streak earlier this season) have two of the longest streaks in program history reaching base safely. Shimabukuro's current 30-game streak, which included a recent 19-game hitting streak, is the 2nd-longest in program history. Here is a look at the longest on-base streaks in WWU history:
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Rk
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Streak
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Player
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Year
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1.
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36
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Michelle Wrigley
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2010-11
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2.
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30
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Chantelle Shimabukuro
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2022
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3.
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26
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Carlie Richards
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2017
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4.
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24
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Coni Posey
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2000
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5.
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22
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Emily Benson
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2017
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|
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22
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Courtney Walton
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2005
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7.
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21
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Tatum Dow
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2021
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21
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Krista Bickar
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2010
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9.
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20
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Tatum Dow
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2022
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|
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20
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Meghan Flem
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2010
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Sydney Brown recorded the 13th no-hitter in WWU Softball History and 28th individual no-hitter in GNAC history on April 3 vs. the Academy of Art in Turlock, California. The no-hitter came on just 90 pitches andwas just the fourth in program history pitching at least 7.0 innings. Here is a listing of all the no-hitters in WWU Softball history:
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No-Hitters (*Perfect Game)
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Date
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Opponent
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Score
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IP-H-R-ER-BB-SO
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Alison Haukaas
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3/2/96
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Eastern Oregon - Game 2
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9-0
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7.0,0,0,0,2,11
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Alison Haukaas
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3/8/96
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Lewis & Clark (6 inn.)
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0-1
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6.0,0,1,0,0,4
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Sarah Diamond*
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3/10/01
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Seattle U. (7 inn.) - Game 2
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7-0
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7.0,0,0,0,0,5
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Nancy Mills
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3/24/01
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Southern Oregon (5 inn.)
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9-0
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5.0,0,0,0,0,3
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Kristen Kiekenapp
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4/30/02
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Seattle U. (5 inn.) - Game 2
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11-0
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5.0,0,0,0,1,4
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Kristen Kiekenapp
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3/13/03
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Northwest Nazarene - Game 1
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5-0
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7.0,0,0,0,1,9
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Nicole Walker
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4/9/05
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Northwest Nazarene (6 inn.) - Game 1
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8-0
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6.0,0,0,0,2,9
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Sarah McEnroe*
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4/10/09
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Northwest Nazarene (5 inn.) - Game 2
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10-0
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5.0,0,0,0,0,3
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Makinlee Sellevold
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3/2/19
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Montana State Billings (6 inn.) - Game 2
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8-0
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6.0,0,0,0,1,9
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Anna Kasner
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2/2/20
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Cal State East Bay (5 inn.)
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10-0
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5.0,0,0,0,1,8
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Anna Kasner*
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3/12/21
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Saint Martin's (6 inn.) - Game 1
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8-0
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6.0,0,0,0,0,6 (71 pitches)
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Anna Kasner
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5/7/21
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Northwest Nazarene (5 inn.)
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9-0
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5.0,0,0,0,0,12 (75 pitches)
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Sydney Brown
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4/3/22
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vs. Academy of Art (Turlock, CA)
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6-0
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7.0,0,0,0,2,3 (90 pitches)
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WWU has had four players earn GNAC Softball Weekly awards this season:
· February 28-March 6 – Tatum Dow (Player) and Kira Doan (Pitcher)
· March 21-27 – Chantelle Shimabukuro (Player) and Sydney Brown (Pitcher)
· Team of the Week – March 21-27
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 enters its 30th season in 2022. WWU advanced to the NCAA Division II Championships for the fifth time in program history in 2021 after winning the GNAC Tournament. WWU has posted a winning record 18 times during the 30-year history of the program, which won the 1998 NAIA National Championship in only its sixth season to record the school's first ever team national title. During the eight-season span from 2014-2021, the Vikings combined to go 195-148 and won a pair of GNAC Tournament titles (2017 & 2019).
