The softball season is well underway, and to say that Bellevue’s softball team is off to a strong start would be an understatement. Holding a 12-2 conference record and a 23-4 record overall, both are good for first in the North. But that’s not all. A coaches’ poll on Mar. 27 placed Bellevue as the number one team in the Northwest Athletic Conference.
The season started with a bang, as a 13-run inning headlined a 22-14 victory against Clackamas, and they didn’t slow down. Of their 27 games so far, Bellevue has scored 10 or more runs in 18 of them. Outside the opening day victory against Clackamas, they scored 20 runs in one other game, a 22-1 victory over Clark.
It should also be noted that their 14 runs allowed in their first game wasn’t a sign of a trend. Never again would they allow 10 runs in a game, as Bellevue only allowed more than five runs four times. On average, Bellevue is outscoring their opponents by over seven runs, which is an absolutely outrageous number. The 300 runs they’ve scored is far above their opposition. Douglas holds the title of second most, with 250. While their 106 runs allowed isn’t the lowest, it is still good for seventh. But wait, it gets even more ridiculous. None of these teams have played as many games as Bellevue. Of the teams with fewer runs allowed than Bellevue, they average almost 10 fewer games played.
I crunched some more numbers to further put this into perspective. Bellevue has allowed 3.9 runs per game. The competition in runs allowed is as follows. Edmonds has allowed 4.9 runs per game, North Idaho has allowed 4.45, Wenatchee Valley has allowed 7.15, Yakima Valley has allowed 9.9 and Mt. Hood has allowed 4.8 per game. The only team that has both allowed less runs than Bellevue and less runs per game is Douglas at 3.8.
Shortstop Tatum Dow deserves a lot of credit for the success. She is currently placed second in the NWAC in batting average at .567. Her on-base percentage of .615 and slugging percentage of 1.100 are also good for second. Her 12 home runs are good for second, not to mention the statistics she holds the first spot in. She’s scored 41 runs, she has 51 hits, 12 doubles, 50 runs batted in and 99 total bases, all of which are good for first in the conference.
Let’s look at some other players. Left fielder Tori McDowell and designated player Nashoni Boyd both place in the top 10 in RBIs, with second baseman Megan Marino placing 12th. Pitcher Rhaney Harris owns a 3.36 Earned Run Average and holds 12 wins, good for fourth and second in the NWAC. Fellow pitchers Carrisa McDowell and Macey Sykes hold ERAs of 2.54 and 4.05. McDowell is second in this regard and Sykes is ninth. It’s also worth noting that McDowell has not allowed a single home run this year, which is unique among the top 18 ERAs in the NWAC.
Bellevue is better than good this year; they’re great, and they’ll hope to continue their hot streak throughout the rest of the season. They play two series against Skagit Valley and Pierce over the next week, with the latter being at home on April 9.