IRVINE, Calif. -- Three PacWest teams finished the Concordia Kickoff Classic with winning records, including Concordia which was the tournament’s champion by going a perfect 5-0 against five of the toughest opponents in the tournament.
Concordia could have hardly picked more challenging opponents to have started the season against as the Eagles took on the preseason favorite of each of the three nearest conferences. The Eagles rose to the challenge and beat those three preseason favorites along with Northwest Nazarene, which was a playoff team last year.
Cortney Koelmans won both of her starts, allowing just one run in 11 innings pitched and 13 strikeouts.
Biola went 3-2 on the week with
Paige Austin earning all three of those victories. The senior pitcher struck out 42 batters compared to only five hits allowed.
Jennifer Morinishi led the Eagles’ offense with seven hits and a .471 on-base percentage for the week.
Azusa Pacific earned three wins in two days with three different pitchers earning wins.
Sydnie Sahhar threw a complete-game shutout Cal State East Bay with seven strikeouts. The CCAA was the conference with the most wins at the tournament, but Azusa Pacific got all three of its wins against teams from the CCAA.
This weekend, Concordia and Academy of Art will play in the Desert Stinger, which will be hosted in Tucson, Arizona, for the first time. The tournament includes several teams from the GNAC along with out-of-region opponents. Azusa Pacific will continue to play against CCAA schools with a doubleheader at Cal State San Marcos followed by a doubleheader at home against Cal State San Bernardino, while Biola hosts Cal State Monterey Bay.
PacWest weekly awards for the week of Jan. 31-Feb. 6
PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Missy Nemeth, Concordia
1B, Jr, 6-1 -- Glendora, Calif.
Nemeth helped Concordia win the first tournament of the year by going 5-0 over the weekend. In the process, Concordia defeated the preseason favorite from the GNAC, CCAA and RMAC. Nemeth recorded a pair of multi-hit games and finished the week 6 for 11 with five RBIs, two doubles and three walks. She opened the week with a pair of walks against Northwest Nazarene, which reached the NCAA West Regional last year. Nemeth then went 3 for 3 with an RBI and a walk against Cal State San Bernardino. The next day, the Eagles’ first baseman hit an RBI-double to help Concordia defeat Western Washington. Against No. 21 Colorado Mesa, Nemeth hit a game-winning base-clearing double to give Concordia a 5-3 win. She finished the game 2 for 2 with three RBIs. Concordia’s 5-0 record was the best out of 21 teams at the Kickoff Classic.
PITCHER OF THE WEEK
Paige Austin, Biola
RHP, Sr., 5-5 -- Los Alamitos, Calif.
Austin picked up where she left off after her historic postseason performance last summer by earning three wins last week, including two wins over playoff teams last year. Austin opened the week with a one-hit shutout with 17 strikeouts against Northwest Nazarene. The following day, she again threw a one-hitter with 13 strikeouts against No. 21 Colorado Mesa, allowing just one earned run, her only earned run of the week. Pitching for a third day in a row, Austin threw 8.2 innings in relief. She entered the game with the bases loaded and one out in the first inning and struck out the next two batters to get out of the jam. Over the next eight innings, she struck out 12 batters and didn’t allow an earned run, giving the Eagles a chance to come from behind and win 6-4 in nine innings. Austin finished the week with 42 strikeouts and only five hits allowed in 22.1 innings of work. She was named the Most Outstanding Pitcher at the Concordia Kickoff Classic.