La Grande, Ore. -
Hattie Hruza hit a grand slam in the eighth inning in game one and
Tanner Higgins went 2-for-3 with three RBI in the nightcap to lead No. 8 College of Idaho softball to a doubleheader sweep of host No. 25 Eastern Oregon on Tuesday. The grand slam by Hruza led the Yotes to a 4-0 win in game one and the efforts by Higgins sparked a 5-4 win for the visitors in the nightcap.
Â
College of Idaho (43-6, 25-5 CCC) and Eastern Oregon (27-17, 16-11 CCC) were scoreless through the first seven innings of the doubleheader in a key series finale between the two teams. The eighth saw the Yotes get a pair of two out singles by
Hallie Holland and
Kaylee MacDannald and a walk to
Haley Loffer loaded the bases for Hruza. Entering the at bat 0-fo-3 with a pair of strikeouts, Hruza sought to get her first hit of the day against the reigning CCC Pitcher of the Week Kaylie Hoskins. The senior came to the plate with a pair of hits with the bases loaded on the season and got her biggest hit of the season with a grand slam over the center-field wall at Peggy Anderson Field to bring jubilation to the visitors from Caldwell.
Â
C of I starting pitcher
Katelyn Wilfert got a fly out and two more strikeouts in the bottom half of the inning to seal the win. Wilfert struck out eight and allowed eight hits without a walk to raise her record to 18-3.
Â
Game two saw College of Idaho score one in the first and four in the fifth en route to a 5-4 win.
Tanner Higgins had two hits and three RBI with two more RBI from
Hattie Hruza, plus two hits from
Makenna Luke in the win. Starting pitcher
Hannah McNerney went 6.2 innings for the win and
Annie Polster got the final out for her second save of the season.
Â
Higgins had a RBI single in the first and a two-RBI single in the fifth to spark the offense, plus Hruza had a two-RBI single in the fifth for the Yotes in the win. The Mountaineers rallied with a run in the sixth and plated three more in the seventh for the final margin.
Â
The Cascade Collegiate Conference Tournament awaits the two teams with seeding to be determined. The tournament will get underway, May 5-7 in Klamath Falls, Ore.