CALDWELL, Idaho –
Marissa Maddox and
Delaney Atkins each slugged home runs as the College of Idaho opened Cascade Conference play with a doubleheader sweep of Northwest Christian at Symms Field.
Colette Robert tossed a 2-hitter in an opening 7-1 win, with the Yotes (13-2, 2-0 CCC) getting four solid innings of relief from
Hannah McNerney in a 6-4 victory in Game 2. The 13-2 record is C of I's best 15-game start in program history.
C of I spotted NCU (2-7, 0-2) a 1-0 lead in Game 1, as Noel Balderston delivered a run with an RBI fielders' choice – but the Beacons stranded the bases loaded and had just one base runner reach third the rest of the game.
A 4-run second inning gave the Coyotes the lead – with Maddox tying the game with an RBI single; Robert rapping a 2-run double and
Kylie Smith added an RBI single. C of I made it 6-1 in the fifth on a
Haley Loffer RBI single and an Atkins sacrifice fly, while an inning later, Maddox capped the scoring with a solo homer.
Robert picked up her fifth win of 2019, striking out three batters. Smith, Loffer and Maddox all have two hits for C of I.
The Yotes bolted to a 4-0 lead in Game 2, as Loffer singled home and run and scored on a 3-run blast from Atkins. NCU chipped away, scoring two runs thanks to a pair of C of I errors in the second inning, with an Alexis Westbrooks RBI single in the third pulling the Beacons within 4-3.
C of I extended their lead in the fifth on an RBI triple from
Trystin Crofts and a squeeze bunt from Loffer – with McNerney doing the rest. The freshman allowed a run on four hits, striking out three, to earn her third win.
Maddox was the lone Coyote with two hits, while Balderston, Westbrooks and Jordan Kuykendall all recording two hits for NCU.
The two teams close out the weekend series with a Saturday doubleheader set for 11 a.m.
