Danielle Lawrie tosses two-hitter for Washington softball

HONOLULU — Danielle Lawrie fired a two-hit shutout and added a two-run single to break open a close game late and lead the top-ranked Washington softball team to a 6-0 win against East Carolina in the opening game of the Bank of Hawai'i Invitational on Friday.

The Huskies (13-1) also got a solo home run from freshman Shawna Wright, her fourth of the season, and a four-run fifth inning was enough to help Lawrie improve to 10-0 on the year.

The game got off to a slow start offensively, with neither team collecting a hit until Jenn Salling reached on a bunt single for the Huskies in the bottom of the fourth.

In the fifth, the Huskies scored four runs, all with two outs. After UW's first two batters struck out against Pirates starter Toni Paisley, Jenna Clifton drew a walk. Bailey Stenson followed with a single to left field, and Kimi Pohlman singled, bringing both Clifton and Stenson around to score on an error by at first base by the Pirates.

With Pohlman at third, Salling drew a walk and stole second to set the table for Lawrie, who laced a single into right field to score both runners.

On the mound, Lawrie struck out seven and walked none. At the plate, she increased her team-leading total to 21 RBI in 14 games.

In a later tournament game, Seattle University fell 9-1 to host Hawaii. Jessica Amador drove in the lone run for the Redhawks (1-9).

Other softball

Two four-run rallies and some standout pitching helped Western Washington sweep Northwest Nazarene, 6-2 and 7-0, in a Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader in Nampa, Idaho.

Caitlin Dotlich keyed both rallies for the Vikings (3-3, 3-3 GNAC), hitting a two-run triple in the second inning of the opener and a two-run single in the seventh inning of the nightcap. She finished 5 for 9 on the day with four runs batted in.

Baseball

Pinch hitter Doug Cherry's two-out, two-run double in the seventh inning capped a seven-run rally and lifted Washington to a 11-9 win over host Long Beach State. The Huskies (5-4), who had trailed 6-0 and 9-4, got four hits from Bradley Boyer and three from Brian Wolfe.

• Seattle University was held to six hits in an 8-1 loss to Pacific in Stockton, Calif. The Redhawks (1-7) scored their lone run in the third inning. Skip Spencer doubled to left field, advanced to third on a flyout and, after Doug Buser was hit by a pitch, scored on a balk by the Pacific pitcher.

• Washington State (8-0) which swept Utah, 5-1 and 6-2, in a doubleheader in Pullman.

• Gonzaga (2-4) dropped the first game of its weekend series with Centenary College 2-1 in Shreveport, La., after a wild pitch with two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning allowed the Gents to score the winning run.

Women's basketball

Claire Ely scored 24 points for 15th-ranked Puget Sound, which opened play in the NCAA Division III tournament with a 54-42 victory over University of Redlands in Newberg, Ore.

Puget Sound next faces George Fox, a 65-49 winner over Louisiana College, at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Women's tennis

In its Pac-10 opener, No. 18 Washington (9-1, 1-0) gritted out a 5-2 win against Arizona at the Huskies' Quillian Courts. Venise Chan led the way with a 7-5, 6-1 victory over Natasha Marks at No. 1 singles.

• Washington State opened Pac-10 play with a 5-2 loss to Arizona State in Pullman.

Men's tennis

Seattle University fell 5-2 to host Portland State. Alex Montgomery picked up one of the points for the Redhawks, recovering from a first-set loss for a 4-6, 6-2, 6-4 victory over Kyle Erickson at No. 3 singles.

Gymnastics

Hatsune Akaogi (39.125) won her third all-around of the season, helping Washington score a season high in a narrow 195.750-195.675 loss to No. 21 Arizona in Tucson.

The Huskies also got wins from Amanda Cline and Haley Bogart (vault, tied at 9.825) and Lauren Rogers, Kristen Linton and Samantha Walior (bars, tied at 9.850). Walior also tied for the win on beam (9.825).

Swimming

Auburn's Ariana Kukors won the 400 individual medley at the Austin (Texas) Grand Prix in 4 minutes, 37.63 seconds, nearly a second ahead of runner-up Katie Hoff. In other results, Puyallup's Megan Jendrick finished third in the 100 breaststroke in 1:08.83.

From sports information reports.