Western Nevada College
Lauren Lesniak slammed her second grand slam in three weeks, Kristina George tossed a three-hit shutout and Gabriella Canibeyaz doubled twice as Western Nevada College swept a softball doubleheader from Colorado Northwestern on Friday in Rangely, Colo.
Lesniak’s 4-for-4 performance at the plate in WNC’s 13-0 victory in the opener also included a solo homer and a double. The Wildcats completed the sweep with an 8-6 victory as Canibeyaz went 3 for 4 and Nicole Lesniak shined in relief of starting pitcher Sadee Sorensen.
Lauren Lesniak, a sophomore catcher, finished with seven RBI. “Lauren had great pitch selection,” said WNC coach Leah Wentworth. “She’s totally relaxed and confident when she’s at the plate.”
Lauren Lesniak’s season-best output made a five-inning winner out of George, who struck out two.
The Wildcats of Carson City totaled 15 hits in the opener. Melanie Mecham went 3 for 4 and Briauna Carter was 2 for 4 with a triple. Canibeyaz, Makaylee Jaussi, Katilyn Covione, Bailey Henderson, Pamela Sakuma and Samantha Bell also delivered base hits for the Wildcats.
“We know we have the bats offensively, but we’ve had a hard time stringing them together and having everyone firing at the same time,” Wentworth said. “We’ve been letting a lot of strikes go by and today our pitch selection was much better.”
Nicole Lesniak relieved Sorensen in the fourth inning with the Wildcats leading 7-5. She surrendered only four hits and one run over the final four frames to pick up the save.
“Nicole did a good job of keeping their hitters off balance to secure the win,” Wentworth said.
Besides Canibeyaz’s three-hit output, she scored twice and knocked in two runs. Jaussi was also active on the base paths, going 2 for 4, stealing two bases and scoring two runs.
Carter, Mecham, Dakota Robinson, Triniece Lesky and Lauren Lesniak, each collected a hit. Carter, Robinson and Lesky also knocked in a run.
The Wildcats on the road after last week’s home stop in Carson City, raised their SWAC record to 3-6, will go for a four-game sweep on Saturday. The teams will play a doubleheader starting at 11 a.m.
