EUGENE, Ore. – Senior Jill Suratt was all business on Wednesday, needing just 50 minutes to complete the first perfect game in NCU softball history as the Beacons toppled No. 23 Corban 10-0 in five innings in the first game of a double-header. Corban went on to pick up the nightcap, 4-2 to escape Eugene with a split.
 
Only two balls left the infield in the game as Suratt retired all 15 batters that she faced, collecting one strikeout, seven ground balls and seven fly balls.  
 
Head Coach Julie Strand said, "Jill just came out in a zone and on a mission. She worked ahead in the count all day and that made a world of a difference. She made them hit her pitches instead of them getting to play to their strengths. This was well deserved for that kid. She has been on the mound in big situations for us this year and she has done a lot of great things. She has worked hard to get this done and I couldn't be more ecstatic that it happened to her."
 
The middle infield work by Randi Kostner and Addy Hoskins provided some help as each fielder needed to make acrobatic plays on short pop flies to the outfield grass. Suratt said, "I have a great defense behind me and I think that is was kept me going strong. I knew that if I put a ball in play that they would get the out behind me. I didn't realize what was going on until the fourth inning and the fifth inning was a little bit more stressful but I tried to keep the pressure off knowing that even if we allowed a few runs we still had a big enough lead to end it."
 
The big lead came courtesy of a ten-hit day for the Beacons who posted four runs in the first inning and another six runs in the third.  RBI singles from Addy Hoskins and Kaeli Massetto and a two-RBI hit by Parker Bonife staked NCU to the early 4-0 lead. Then Ashlee Cole got things rolling in the third, leading off the frame with a solo home run. Randi Kostner did some of the heavy lifting as well, punching a three-RBI triple to deep right-center field.
 
Hoskins, Massetto, Bonife and Kostner all had two hits apiece for the Beacons. Sabrina Boyd went the distance in the circle for the Warriors, allowing seven earned runs and striking out three batters in four innings of work.
 
Suratt went back to work in game two and retired the first five batters she faced, giving her a string of 20 consecutive outs on the day before a single from Kylie Durre in the second inning.
 
The game remained scoreless into the top of the fourth inning when Corban, the top scoring team in the CCC, finally got on the board. A leadoff single for Kyriana Sorensen was followed by a walk to Rae Dorcas. A few batters later it was Raimee Sluder coming through with a bases loaded pinch-hit single that brought Sorensen and Dorcas around to score.
 
NCU had an answer, tying the game in the bottom of the fourth when junior Parker Bonife knocked her seventh home run of the season to dead center field, scoring Cole who had just got on with a two-out double.
 
The game remained tied until the top of the seventh inning when Corban pieced together two runs on just one hit, benefitting from two NCU errors to win the game.
 
Suratt (7-13) took the loss despite allowing just two earned runs. She struck out five batters in her seven innings of work. Danielle Horne (6-1) got the win for Corban, also allowing two runs over seven innings with two strikeouts.
 
Sorensen finished the game 3-for-4 to lead the Warriors.
 
The win for the Beacons was just their third against Corban in 26 games, dating back to 2010. NCU (12-30, 9-15 CCC) also remained alive in the post season hunt with the split. Four games remain this weekend and they are three games behind Southern Oregon for fourth place. The Beacons will try to close the gap beginning with a double-header against No. 17 Concordia on Friday afternoon. NCU will host the Cavaliers beginning at 2 p.m.
 
"I told the girls this week that we have the opportunity to set a legacy here and be the first team to make playoffs," said coach Strand. "It's on our backs to get it done right now. To see them come out in game one and just rope the ball was fantastic. We were getting runners on and getting the timely hitting and base running that forced Corban to try and make plays. The difference between the two games was not getting the timely hits after we got runners on. If we can play like that team that showed up for the first game, we can beat anybody and we have a shot at beating Concordia this weekend."