AZUSA, CALIF. -- The NAIA's No. 3-ranked Azusa Pacific clinched the GSAC championship and extended its winning streak to a season-high 15 games with a 3-0, 4-0 sweep over Concordia.
The Cougars have outscored opponents 74-14 over the current streak. In GSAC games, Azusa Pacific has won 11 straight and takes the GSAC championship for the third time in the past 5 years, the first since 1997.
Azusa Pacific took an early 2-0 lead in the second inning, as Jennifer Stark hit an RBI double, then came around to score on Jennifer Powell's 2-out single. Cristal Brown led off the sixth inning with a single to right field, and scored on another 2-out single, this time from Laura Powers to give the Cougars a 3-0 lead after 6 innings.
Jodi Miller, who earlier in the week became the second Cougar ever to post back-to-back 20-win seasons, scattered 8 hits to collect her 21st win of the season. Miller worked out of bases-loaded situations in the sixth and seventh innings to preserve her 13th shutout victory. She also extended her scoreless inning streak in GSAC games to 35 innings.
In the nightcap, Mandy Dorow fired a 2-hitter to pick up her 17th win in a row and her 10th shutout of the year. Carrie Shankles led off the first inning with a double, and Nicole Lev did the same in the fourth inning, but Dorow retired the next 3 batters in each inning to stay out of trouble.
Brown and Shannon Long both scored in the first inning on Lorna Lyttle's 1-out single in the bottom of the first inning, and Jennifer Robison hit RBI doubles in consecutive at-bats, scoring Jaime Salazar in the second inning, and Long again in the fourth inning to cap the scoring for the Cougars.
Long and Robison each finished the game 2-for-3, and Stark went 2-for-2 with a double to lead the Cougar attack.
With 2 hits in the opener and another in the nightcap, Lyttle has reached base safely in 17 consecutive games, and has not been held off base for an entire game since a 5-4 loss at Concordia March 21.
With today's wins, Azusa Pacific improves to 17-3 in GSAC play, 40-9 overall (38-4 since Feb. 19), while Concordia drops to 9-13 in the GSAC, 20-23 overall.
Game 1
Concordia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- 0 8 0
Azusa Pacific 0 2 0 0 0 1 x -- 3 8 0
Carrie Shankles (L), Christie Shankles (4) and Dawn Davidson
Jodi Miller (W, 21-5) and Sasha Budde
2B – Crystal Rosenthal (CU), Jennifer Stark (APU),
Jennifer Robison (APU)
Game 2
Concordia 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 -- 0 2 1
Azusa Pacific 2 1 0 1 0 0 x -- 4 8 2
Andrea Castillo (L), Christie Shankles (4) and Dawn Davidson
Mandy Dorow (W, 19-4) and Jaime Salazar
2B – Carrie Shankles (CU), Jennifer Robison (APU) 2,
Jennifer Stark (APU), Nicole Lev (CU),
Shannon Long (APU)
