Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 | Box Score 3 | Box Score 4 PORTLAND, Ore. – Finding its form at the right time of the 2025 season, the Saint Martin's softball team has rattled off eight consecutive victories to climb into second place in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference standings.
 
The Saints (26-9, 11-4 GNAC) are fresh off a road sweep of Central Washington and were selected as the GNAC Team of the Week on Monday. The most recent four victories followed a three-game sweep of Montana State Billings and a win over Northwest Nazarene on March 22 that kicked off the three-week winning stretch. "We are getting baserunners and we are coming through with key hits to get us more RBIs," SMU head coach Jim Peterson said on the team's success of late. "On the first day at Central, it was really windy and the weather played a factor in it. Those were close games, and we gave ourselves a chance to win them by getting hits with runners in scoring position."
 
The Saints gutted out wins of 12-11 and 11-9 on the opening day of the series against the Wildcats, with high winds resulting in 43 combined runs being scored between the teams. SMU had to overcome deficits of 4-0 and 8-3 to win the series opener, as it used a six-run fifth inning and held on through a CWU rally for the triumph. The second game of the series featured a six-run fourth inning by SMU, which once again held on through a big rally by CWU and put up zeroes in each of the final three frames to make it a doubleheader sweep.

Things calmed down on the second day of the series, which began with a pitcher's duel and a 2-1 win for SMU. Senior ace Chloe Leverington went the distance, striking out four and allowing one unearned run along with five hits in her seven innings of work. SMU jumped out to a lead with a three-run first inning in the series finale and maintained the advantage throughout for a 7-5 win to extend its streak. "Under normal (weather) conditions on Sunday we had to play really close games again," Peterson said. "It came down to better defense and finding a way to score a few runs. It's tough to win on the road in the GNAC, and it has been huge for us this season to win those close games."

Leverington has been at the root of the success in the circle for SMU, her 16 victories in 2025 leading all GNAC players. Leverington is fourth in the league with 62 strikeouts in her 103 innings pitched, while holding a 3.13 ERA, a .294 opponents' batting average and collecting three saves along the way. She is the GNAC's all-time leader in saves with 27 and is tied for 14th in league history with 46 career victories. "Chloe's senior leadership is really great for our team," Peterson said. "On Sunday she came back and looked really good in the 2-1 game. Having her in the circle gives our team great stability with her experience out there."
 
Reigning GNAC Freshman of the Year Heather Ebner has been even better in her sophomore campaign, leading the GNAC with 56 RBIs and a slugging percentage of .822 while ranking second with a batting average of .441. Ebner picked up GNAC Player of the Week honors, after slashing .769/.824/1.615 in the four-game sweep of the Wildcats last week. Ebner hit three home runs to up her season total to 11, and she also ranks second in the conference this year with an on-base percentage of .528. The Saints relied on Ebner's prowess in the 12-11, series-opening win, as she had two homers and five RBIs among the eight runs the Saints scored in the pivotal fourth and fifth innings. "She is a tough hitter to pitch to," said Peterson. "We have a lot of players getting on base ahead of her, and teams have to pitch to her with runners on. She is doing a great job of getting quality hits for us and a lot of RBIs, which has been helpful for our team."

Ebner is the centerpiece in a lineup that features several of the league's top hitters, with junior Shelby Lawson ranking third in the GNAC in hitting at .413 and sophomore leadoff hitter Ashley Goodale sitting fourth in the conference in on-base percentage at .472. Lawson has started all 35 games and hits behind Ebner at No. 3 in the lineup, where she has delivered 34 RBIs and stolen 10 bases while striking out just six times across 142 plate appearances. "Shelby is swinging the bat really good this year, and it's a tough combination to pitch to Heather, Shelby and then Haley Agena after her," Peterson said on the 2-through-4 hitters in his lineup. "We have quality hitters in the top of the lineup, and it's creating RBI opportunities for multiple players."
 
Goodale is the sparkplug at the top, where she is hitting .373 and has a team-leading 11 stolen bases. Another Saint to have started all 35 games, Goodale's .472 on-base percentage is rooted in a team-leading 22 walks drawn while striking out just five times in 145 plate appearances. "Ashley is our leadoff hitter, and she puts pressure on the defense," said Peterson. "With her speed on the bases, it gives our other hitters opportunities to get at-bats with runners on base."
 
Freshman leftfielder Elissa Dewees has also found her own in her debut collegiate season, earning 28 starts and ranking fourth on the team with a batting average of .364. "As a freshman she is doing really well getting on base," Peterson said of the ninth-place hitter in the lineup. "She has speed which is helpful. We have put pressure on teams offensively and that has led to scoring more runs, and taking quality at-bats and scoring runs has been a big focus for us this year."

After taking over leadership of the Saints' program in 2018, Peterson has built a record of 194-143 (.576) including 94-72 (.567) in conference play over the last eight years. SMU has qualified for each of the last four GNAC Championships tournaments under Peterson's guidance, as they will look to extend that stretch by continuing their momentum over the final eight games of the regular season. The top-four teams in the GNAC standings earn spots in the conference tournament, which runs May 1-3 in Nampa, Idaho. SMU also advanced to the NCAA West Region Championships in 2024 – its first appearance at the regional tournament since the 2015 campaign.
 
"We talk as a team about how we have a core group of players who have been in the GNAC playoffs and played in the NCAA regionals," Peterson said. "We talk to our returning players about that and what that experience feels like in the games we are playing now. It has been a huge benefit to teach the younger players what playoff caliber softball feels like."
 
Focus this week will be on another tough road trip, as the Saints cross the border to take on Simon Fraser (19-18, 10-6) in a crucial series that kicks off on Friday at 3 p.m. (Pacific). The Red Leafs sit just one game behind the Saints in the win column in the GNAC standings, as the two playoff contenders will go head-to-head for the first time in conference play this season. SMU won a non-conference doubleheader between the two on Feb. 18 in Burnaby, B.C.
 
"We have to get recharged after last weekend," said Peterson on his team's preparation for the trip to Canada. "Going up there, those are going to be tough games. They are an improved team this year, and they score runs as well. This will be a challenge for us this weekend."