Sophomore catcher Sami Keim frames a pitch from sophomore pitcher Lauren Harvey during Linfield’s 7-3 win against Pacific University on April 24. Megan Myer Photo editor.

Linfield’s softball team ended its regular season April 24 and 25 with four wins against second-place Pacific University.
Despite having a playoff berth already locked up, the games were still crucial.
“These games are all so big in seeding us for regionals,” freshman infielder Karliegh Prestianni said.
Senior pitcher Samantha Van Noy started her last regular season game and gave up eight runs on eight hits in two innings.
Trailing 2-8 in the third inning, Linfield closed the gap with three runs on a home run by Prestianni.
Sophomore Emilee Lepp added another three-run shot of her own in the fourth before Prestianni hit a two-run bomb to put the Wildcats in front 10-8, a lead they would hold for the rest of the game.
“Getting down like that, we don’t really ever get nervous because we know that with one or two swings of the bat we can tie the game up,” Prestianni said. “All the way through the lineup, we’re a threat like that.”
Junior Claire Velaski allowed no runs on two hits in three innings of relief of Van Noy.
Pacific sophomore pitcher Lauren Tuey had a rough fifth inning, walking five batters, hitting two and throwing five wild pitches, resulting in six runs and a 16-8 victory for Linfield.
The Wildcats and the Boxers pitched their aces in Game 2: sophomore Lauren Harvey for Linfield and senior Miranda McNealy for Pacific.
Junior second baseman Alex Hartmann broke open the scoring with a two-run double. She was driven home by a double from junior left fielder Kayla Hubrich, putting the ’Cats up 3-0.
Sophomore catcher Sami Keim’s grand slam gave Linfield a 7-1 in the fifth.
Errors led to all three Pacific runs as Harvey gave up no unearned runs on six hits while striking out seven in a complete game.
The series moved to Forest Grove on April 25, but Linfield brought its bats once again against Pacific’s secondary pitching.
The Wildcats, the No. 1 home run hitting team in Division III, hit three more long balls.
Prestianni had her 13th of the year — a three-run bomb. Keim had a two-run homer, her second in two days. First baseman Stacie Doucette tied a Linfield record with her 14th of the season, which leads D-III softball.
The team averages just fewer than 1.5 home runs per game, a statistic that could break D-III records if they continue this success.
Although she hit three long balls and drove in 12 runs on the weekend, Prestianni said she does not look for home runs.
“I’m definitely not trying to [hit home runs],” she said. “I’m just trying to get a hit every time, and I guess it just happens.”
The ’Cats won 16-5 and also received major contributions from sophomore centerfielder Jaydee Baxter, who drove in three, and Velaski struck out six batters in two innings.
With 59 home runs, the team has shattered its single-season record of 50 and two more than the program did from 1993-2004.
Linfield swept the Boxers with a 5-3 win in the regular season finale.
Doucette, Baxter and junior shortstop Emily Keagbine all had RBI doubles and provided enough support for Harvey to pick up her 16th victory.
The Wildcats have a week off before heading to regionals, bringing their 35-5 record with them. The team moved up to No. 11 in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll and has an identical record to the No. 1 team, Louisiana College.
Senior right fielder Rochelle Friend has been in three regionals and helped win a national championship in 2007. She knows the level of competition will be a lot higher than the NWC.
“Our region is by far the toughest region there is,” she said. “The teams [at regionals] are a lot better than the ones we play in conference.”
Linfield opens up postseason play May 13.
Kurtis Williams
FreelancerKurtis Williams can be reached at linfieldreviewsports@gmail.com

Senior infielder Candice Fujino leads the Wildcats back to the dugout after a run scores during. Megan Myer/Photo editor.

The Linfield softball team swept Northwest Conference rival Willamette University in four games in McMinnville on April 17-18 for the first time since 2004 and claimed its seventh consecutive NWC title with a 23-1 record.
Junior pitcher Claire Velaski threw a complete game, allowing one run on four hits as the Wildcats took the first of four home games 4-1.
Scoring opened in the bottom of the third when freshman third baseman Karleigh Prestianni drove home sophomore catcher Emilee Lepp. The next batter, junior shortstop Emily Keagbine drove in Prestianni and sophomore first baseman Staci Doucette.
Lepp scored Linfield’s last run in the fifth on a groundout by Doucette after tripling. Lepp tallied three of Linfield’s seven hits.
“I was confident,” Velaski said. “Our hitting is out of control right now.”
Linfield’s other starting pitcher, sophomore Lauren Harvey, took the ball in Game 2 and matched Velaski’s performance. Harvey pitched all seven innings while surrendering just five hits and two earned runs.
Doucette’s two-run single, the fourth hit in a row, capped off a five-run, six-hit second inning. The inning erased the 1-0 lead Willamette had — its only lead of the weekend.
“If we allow runs, we have total confidence our offense is going to put runs on the board,” Harvey said.
Doucette led off the fifth inning with the 51st home run of the season. This sets a single season record for the program.
Junior left fielder Kayla Hubrich added two hits and two runs in the 7-3 win.
Velaski threw her second complete game of the series, allowing five hits and two runs and improving her record to 13-2. Velaski’s earned run average dropped to 1.77, which, along with her victories, ranks second in the conference.
Lepp’s homer in the third was Linfield’s only run until the team brought 10 batters to the plate in the fifth, scoring five runs on four hits, including a two-run single by Doucette.
“Even if we get down, I never feel like we’re going to lose,” Velaski said. “I never get that sinking feeling; I know the offense will come through and do their job. It’s just a matter of time.”
Velaski added that when the pressure is on, the team follows through. She said she has confidence that the team will have at least one offensive outburst a game, which Harvey agreed with.
Willamette added a consolation run in the sixth on a sacrifice fly from sophomore shortstop Mica Romero to score sophomore outfielder Sierra Lessel, but the Bearcats lost their third straight game 6-2.
The outcome of the last game of the series was never in doubt.
After loading the bases with no outs in the first and finding only one run, the offense exploded for six in the second. Lepp and Doucette both had two-run doubles in the inning.
Harvey improved her conference-leading 1.51 ERA and won her NWC-best 14th game in the 8-0 win.
Both Harvey and Velaski said that sweeping the second-place team in the conference is proof that the team deserves to stand alone atop the NWC.
The wins moved Linfield, 31-5 overall, to No. 16 in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll with 10 teams with as many or more losses than the ’Cats.
The first NCAA regional rankings have Linfield at third in the West behind University of Texas-Tyler, which bounced the Wildcats from the postseason last year, and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps, which defeated Linfield twice this year.
The team wraps up regular season play with two home games April 24, followed by two away games against Pacific University on April 25.
The Boxers, now second in the NWC, lost two games to Whitworth University on April 17-18, which allowed Linfield to secure the NWC crown.

Kurtis Williams
FreelancerKurtis Williams can be reached at linfieldreviewsports@gmail.com

Junior Claire Velaski prepares to release a pitch during the ’Cats’ practice April 15. Velaski has held her opponents to a conference-best .198 this season. Megan Myer/Photo editor

Filling in for graduated teammates can be a daunting task for any up-and-coming player.
Sophomore Lauren Harvey and junior Claire Velaski are in that position at this stage of their collegiate softball careers.
The Linfield duo is following accomplished alumnae pitchers Brittany Miller and Kendra Strahm.
Miller has nearly twice as many strikeouts as the next closest pitcher in the record books. She and Strahm are first and second, respectively, in career wins and games started, and both helped win a national championship in 2007.
Despite their success this season, Velaski said she and Harvey could not compare themselves to Miller and Strahm because every pitcher has a style of her own.
Harvey knows this year’s pitching staff has to make a name for itself.
“Everyone knows Kendra and Brittany were really great pitchers, and they had successful careers here,” she said. “Every pitcher is different, and I think we just proved we can get the job done, too.”
And the proof is in the numbers.
Harvey leads the Northwest Conference in wins and earned run average. Velaski is second in both categories, as well as strikeouts. Not since 2006 have two Linfield pitchers accomplished this one-two feat.
“Each of the pitchers has her own strengths and weaknesses,” head coach Jackson Vaughan said. “[Harvey and Velaski] just have to keep striving to reach their own potential and be good in their own way for us.”
Pitching after Strahm and Miller, Linfield’s current hurlers put Harvey and Velaski in some pressure-packed situations so they would be ready when their time came, Vaughn said.
The strategy paid off now that Harvey and Velaski are the top two pitchers in the NWC.
The four years Strahm and Miller were with the Wildcats, the program had its top-four years in batting average, home runs and runs batted in.
Even with limited experience in postseason play, the two realize they are pitching to the best of competition.
“Everyday at practice, we’re facing some of the best hitters in the nation, and a lot of times, it’s harder than it is in games,” Velaski said. “Knowing that the team we’re going up against has to pitch to our team gives me confidence.”
Harvey agreed, noting that opposing pitchers cannot rest facing a lineup with strong hitters from the leadoff to the ninth spot. Every time the two step into the pitching circle, they have faith that their offense will come through.
The season’s back-loaded schedule was another confidence boost.
Linfield’s biggest conference opponents were scheduled last, giving the two time to fine-tune their pitches and gain confidence as the season went forward.
After securing this year’s NWC title, the two will lead the Wildcats to the NCAA Western Regionals May 13-16.
“I expect that when [the team] gets to regionals, we’ll do well,” Velaski said. “[The team] hasn’t peaked yet, and that’s what’s so exciting about this year. In past years, we’ve peaked a little early and kind of got stagnant. And I think we’re still going up.”

Kurtis Williams
Freelancer Kurtis Williams can be reached at linfieldreviewsports@gmail.com

Sophomore Lauren Harvey delivers a pitch during practice April 15. Harvey leads the pitching staff with 12 wins and is second with 76 strikeouts. Megan Myer/Photo editor.

Linfield softball collected six Northwest Conference wins after taking two games each from Pacific Lutheran University on April 10, the University of Puget Sound on April 11 and Lewis & Clark College on April 14.
Traveling to Tacoma, Wash., for four matchups, the Wildcats first took two games from the 9-3 Lutes.
Falling into a 0-2 first-inning hole, sophomore centerfielder Jaydee Baxter hit a two-run home run as part of a three-run third inning to take the lead.
The Lutes rallied in the fourth for three runs of their own, taking a 5-3 lead.
Linfield notched another three-run inning on a solo home run by sophomore first baseman Staci Doucette and a two-run home run by junior second baseman Alex Hartmann.
Padding their lead with two scores in the seventh, the Wildcats went on to win 8-5.
Sophomore pitcher Lauren Harvey threw five innings, giving up three earned runs before junior Claire Velaski closed out the game with a two-inning save.
The second of the two games was another nail-biter, but a well-rounded hitting performance helped Linfield to a 5-4 win.
Each Wildcat hitter had a base hit, including a three-run home run from sophomore catcher Emilee Lepp in the second inning.
Velaski threw a complete game with six strikeouts for her ninth win of the year.
“We knew we could beat them, but we knew we needed to play hard,” Lepp said. “They’re a good team.”
In the series opener against the Loggers, Harvey threw a one-hit shutout, adding eight strikeouts en route to her 11th win of the year.
Doucette had runs batted during the third and fifth inning before junior shortstop Emily Keagine placed the game out of reach with a three-run home run.
Lepp closed out the 7-0 win with a solo homer in the seventh.
The final game of the weekend was never in doubt. Hartmann recorded two first-inning RBIs in a three-run opening frame. Lepp and Baxter added home runs. All starters had base hits in the 11-1 win.
With all the long balls the ’Cats are hitting, it is no surprise that the team leads Division III softball in home runs per game with 1.6.
The wins helped the team move up one spot in the National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll to No. 18.
The Wildcats traveled to Portland to make up a rained-out series against Lewis & Clark College April 14.
Baxter kicked off the scoring in the second with the first of her two RBI singles. She scored on a double by sophomore designated player Sami Kemi.
Freshman third baseman Karleigh Prestianni hit a two-run double in the third and a three-run homer in the fourth to account for five of the eight runs in those innings.
Velaski and junior Elsie Karscig combined to allow three hits in five innings, as the ’Cats won 12-2.
In the second match, Linfield strung together 18 hits, including six doubles in a 14-3 rout.
Every starter had a hit while Keagbine and senior right fielder Rochelle Friend had three RBIs, and Baxter, Lepp and Doucette each added two.
Linfield has four players in the top 10 of home runs nationwide. Doucette is tied for the national lead with 12, Lepp and Prestianni are fourth with 10 deep balls and Keagbine sits in seventh with nine.
Harvey was named NWC pitcher of the week after going 3-0 and striking out 13 without walking a batter. Lepp, her catcher, was offensive player of the week with six homers, 14 RBIs and a .500 batting average.
Lepp said her hitting has improved but not as a result of any change in her swing or her approach. She said hits that used to go for singles are now simply leaving the yard.
Lepp, who hit second the last several games, said she prefers that spot to the leadoff position she held a few weeks ago.
She said the team is feeling less stress as it progresses through the season.
The 19-1 Wildcats host the second place and 15-3 Willamette University Bearcats for four games, April 17-18.
“We love playing Willamette,” Lepp said. “They’re always our best competition, and we’re all excited to play them. And it’s always fun to play at home.”

Kurtis Williams
FreelancerKurtis Williams can be reached at linfieldrevewsports@gmail.com

The softball team once again reaffirmed its spot atop the Northwest Conference.
Doubleheaders against George Fox University and Lewis & Clark College were rained out on April 3 and 4, respectively.
While the Lewis & Clark series was rescheduled for April 14, the games against the Bruins were made up April 7, in which the Wildcats won 12-0 and 8-0.
Linfield jumped on George Fox pitching early on, scoring seven runs in the first inning, during which eight batters reached base. Senior right fielder Rochelle Friend began the inning with an extra-base hit and ended it with a base-clearing double.
The following inning, sophomore designated hitter Staci Doucette homered off the right field scoreboard.
In the third, sophomore catcher Emilee Lepp hit a three-run home run. Another run in the fourth rounded out the score to 12-0.
Junior pitcher Claire Velaski was perfect through three innings, striking out seven of nine batters and moving her record to 8-2.
Senior pitcher Samantha Van Noy allowed two hits in the remaining two innings.
Friend and Lepp both had two hits and four runs batted in. Junior shortstop Emily Keagbine added two hits in her return from a broken jaw March 27. The rain outs caused her to only miss two games.
Lepp did more damage with her bat in the second game. She added two solo home runs, a single and three runs.
In the fourth inning, Lepp and Doucette homered back-to-back. Doucette’s RBI single in the sixth ended the game 8-0.
Doucette’s 11th home run of the year puts her atop all NCAA Division III athletes. The Wildcats remain first in the country with 1.54 home runs per game.
Sophomore pitcher Lauren Harvey improved to 10-2 while striking out five batters and giving up one hit in four innings. Sophomore Brittany Woods pitched the last two frames, giving up one hit.
Linfield will play a 9-3 Pacific Lutheran University on April 10 and University of Puget Sound on April 11. The Wildcats will travel to Portland to make up the rained-out games against Lewis & Clark on April 14.
Kurtis Williams
Freelancer Kurtis Williams can be reached at linfieldreviewsports@gmail.com