PORTLAND, Ore.—Lewis & Clark College softball scored 10 runs in both ends of their Northwest Conference home-opening doubleheader on Saturday afternoon to move to 10-0 on the season. 
 
THE BASICS
 
Lewis & Clark 10, Pacific 2 (5 Innings) 
Lewis & Clark 10, Pacific 4
(Lewis & Clark 10-0, NWC 6-0)
(Pacific 3-5, NWC 3-3) 

HOW IT HAPPENED
 
The Pioneers used a pair of strong pitching performances from juniors Maggie O'Leary and Charlize Pope and a total team effort offensively to sweep the Boxers for the second time this season. 
 
Graduate student Mari Alvarez set a pair of career program records in game two. She broke a tie for most games played when she took the field for the 157^th time. After being hit by a pitch in her first at-bat, she lined an RBI double just out of the reach of the center fielder in the third inning for her program-record setting 156^th career hit. 
 
GAME ONE RECAP 
 
Lewis & Clark jumped out to a 4-1 lead after one and used five runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to post their third mercy-rule victory of the year. 
 
O'Leary moved to 8-0 on the season after scattering three hits, one walk and two earned runs. She struck out four to move to 3-0 against Pacific this year. 
 
Junior McKenna Zehnder and senior Sam Gildersleeve each drove in a pair of runs. Zehnder finished 2-3 with a run scored, two RBI and a double. Gildersleeve tacked on a single, a run and a pair of RBI. 
 
Sophomores Makena Dahir and Harper Campanella each posted multi-hit games. Dahir went 2-3 with two runs, a triple, a walk and an RBI. Campanella added two hits, a walk and an RBI. Junior Emily Patton chipped in two runs, an RBI and a walk. 
 
After Pacific took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first, Lewis & Clark posted a four-spot in the bottom of the inning. Gina Ozuna led off with a triple into the left-field corner and Dahir followed with an infield single. Campanella walked to load the bases and Gildersleeve hit a bouncer through the left-side that went just under the Boxers' shortstop's glove for a two-run single. After a hit by pitch to Alvarez reloaded the bases, Campanella scored on a wild pitch and Gildersleeve raced home on a Patton RBI groundout. 
 
The Pioneers added a fifth run against Pacific starter Kiara Baba in the third. With runners at first and second and one out, Zehnder lined a double just inside the third-base bag, to score Patton from second base. 
 
Addie MacPherson hit a solo home run in the fourth inning to shave the deficit to 5-2. 
 
Lewis & Clark put the game away in the fifth against reliever Karlie Espinoza. Patton opened the inning by reaching on an error and she raced all the way home on a Lola Jarrette double down the left-field line. Zehnder made it 7-2 with an RBI single up the middle. Lacey Marglin pinch-hit and came through with an RBI double to score Zehnder. With one out, Dahir tripled over the head of the right fielder to put the mercy-rule run at third base. Dahir raced home on a Campanella grounder to shortstop. The shortstop tried to get Dahir at home but her throw bounced off of Campanella's bat in the right-handed batter's box and skittered away allowing Dahir to score the 10^th run. 
 
GAME TWO RECAP 
 
Pope turned in her best performance of the season thus far and Lewis & Clark scored in each of their final five at-bats to post their fifth-straight doubleheader sweep. 
 
Pope threw her first, seven-inning complete game of the year and struck out a season-high six batters. She limited the visitors to seven hits, one walk and four runs to move to 2-0. The junior allowed one walk through the first four innings, before giving up her first hit and runs in the fifth. 
 
Patton had a big game out of the six-hole. The junior went 3-4 with two runs scored. Alvarez finished 2-2 with two runs, a double, an RBI and a hit by pitch. Zehnder added two more RBI and Dahir finished 2-4 with a run scored. 
 
Lewis & Clark grabbed the lead in the second. Alvarez was hit by a pitch, Patton reached on a bunt single and Jarrette moved both runners into scoring position with a sac bunt. Zehnder came through when she laced a single just over the head of the shortstop to score both runners. 
 
The Pioneers more than doubled their lead in the third. Dahir opened the frame with a double, took third on a passed ball and scored on a Gildersleeve RBI single through the left side. Alvarez set the program record for career hits, when she lined a double to center to make it 4-0. Patton followed with a single and Jarrette delivered a sac fly to center to extend the lead to 5-0. 
 
Lewis & Clark made it 7-0 in the fourth when Ozuna and Campanella produced RBI singles to score Marglin and Ozuna. 
 
Pacific wouldn't go down without a fight. Pacific scratched across two runs in the top of the fifth to keep a potential mercy-rule at bay. They would add single runs in the sixth and seventh. 
 
In the fifth, Lewis & Clark answered with two runs of their own when Pippi Jepsen and Patton both scored on a wacky play where the Boxers recorded a pair of errors on a grounder to shortstop. 
 
The Pioneers added one final run in the sixth, when junior Cami Restagno belted her first collegiate home run. 
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Lewis & Clark are off to their second-best start in school history. The 1977 team went 16-1 for the season and there are no records available of when they lost their first contest. The 2024 team, that set the program record for wins (28-16), were 9-6 at this point of the calendar year last Spring.  
• Alvarez tied and passed Caroline DeVincenzi (2009-12) for most games played in today's doubleheader. DeVincenzi closed out her career with 156 games played. 
• Zehnder finished the day 3-5 with one run and four RBI. 
• Alvarez broke a tie with Hannah Dal pra (2013-16) for most career hits. Alvarez (157) and Dal Pra (155) are the only two hitters in program history with 150 or more career hits. 
• Through their first six conference games, Campanella (.545), Dahir (.500) and Alvarez (.500) are all hitting .500 or better. Senior Caeleigh Rosenbach is also hitting .500 with two hits in four at-bats. 
• Shawna Cyrus picked up career wins 192 and 193 on Saturday. After posting double-digit win seasons in five of her first 11 seasons, the Pioneers have won 10 or more games in five-straight years. 

WHO'S NEXT 
 
Lewis & Clark will look to win their second-straight NWC series on Sunday, when they host Pacific at Noon and 2 p.m.