NIC SOFTBALL: Cards split home opener

COEUR d’ALENE — Ana Raynor and Brittany Gay hit back-to-back home runs leading off the bottom of the fourth inning for North Idaho College in an 8-7 win over the Big Bend Vikings of Moses Lake in the first game of a Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader at Memorial Field on Saturday.

Gay also hit a solo home run in the second inning for NIC (11-3, 5-1 NWAC), which lost the second game 7-3 against Big Bend.

Lexi Courtney also homered twice in the opener for NIC.

In the second game, former Lakeland High standout Tifani Schorzman went 3 for 4 with a home run and two RBIs as the Vikings beat the Cardinals, snapping their six-game winning streak.

Abby Howard, Katie Barron and Nicole Miller all homered in the game for NIC, which hosts Columbia Basin on Wednesday in a doubleheader starting at 3 p.m. at Memorial Field.

FIRST GAME

Big Bend 002 120 2 — 7 9 2

North Idaho 112 211 x — 8 9 7

Shayla Baker, Olivia Harrison (5) and Tifani Schorzman; Amber Hawkes, Katie Barron (6) and Abby Howard. W — Hawkes (4-1). L — Baker (2-4). S — Barron (2).

HITS: BBCC — Korten 2, Flemming, Goslin, Schorzman 2, Rollins, Baker 2. NIC — Howard, Courtney 3, Barron, Raynor, Gay 2, Russell. 2B — Korten, Courtney. HR — Schorzman (3), Baker (1), Courtney 2 (2), Barron (5), Raynor (2), Gay 2 (5).

SECOND GAME

Big Bend 033 000 1 — 7 10 2

North Idaho 201 000 0 — 3 7 0

Olivia Harrison, Shayla Baker (2) and Tifani Schorzman; Amber Hawkes, Katie Barron (3) and Abby Howard. W — Baker (3-4). L — Hawkes (4-2).

HITS: BBCC — Korten, Goslin, Schorzman 3, Rollins, Harrison, Baker, Heide, Schwartz. NIC — Howard, Barron 3, Miller, Gay, Yurick. HR — Schorzman (3), Harrison (2), Howard (5), Barron (5), Miller (5).