PORTLAND, Ore. – Emily Osborn and Jessyka MacDonald of the MSUB softball team were both honored as Great Northwest Athletic Conference Players of the Week announced Monday by the conference office.
 
Osborn was named Player of the Week, and MacDonald the Pitcher of the Week in GNAC softball action, Feb. 23- Mar. 1.
 
Osborn had nine hits in 21 at bats during the College of Idaho/Northwest Nazarene University Classic last weekend. MacDonald recorded three victories and a save during the MSUB contests. The Yellowjackets won four of six games at the inaugural tournament in Idaho.
 
Osborn batted .429 including two doubles and three homeruns during the six games. The senior first baseman from Las Vegas, Nev., was instrumental in MSUB's 5-3 win over the College of Idaho. She was 2-3 in the game with two home runs and 3 RBI's. Osborn was 3-3 in the 11-3 win over Eastern Oregon with her third home run of the tournament and finished with two RBI's and scored two runs.
 
Osborn is leading the GNAC in home runs with five on the year so far.  She is also first in the conference in slugging percentage at .766, and second in total bases with 36. On the season Osborn is batting .362, third on the team.
 
"Emily has been doing a great job of getting on time and hitting the ball squarely," MSUB head coach Lisa Allen said. "She came up with some very clutch hits for us this weekend."
 
MacDonald, a senior from Billings, Mont., earned three victories and a save, allowing just 10 hits in 15 innings.  She walked eight and fanned 12 in posting a 2.80 ERA in the tournament. MacDonald leads the GNAC in strikeouts with 32. She is tied for second in wins with four and is fifth in innings pitched with 37.1. She has also made the most appearances, 12 so far on the year.
 
At the COI/NNU tournament, MacDonald pitched two complete games. She went seven innings in the win over the College of Idaho and five in the win over Eastern Oregon. In the win over BritishColumbia, MacDonald stepped in for two-thirds of an inning, recording the final two outs of the game for the save. MacDonald is currently sixth in the GNAC in individual pitching, holding a 3.86 ERA.
 
"Jessyka stepped up for her team big time this weekend," Allen said. "She did everything from throwing complete games to coming into pressure situations to close out games."
 
Next up for Montana State University Billings the team is headed for stops at Western Washington and Saint Martin's. MSUB opens GNAC play with a 4-game series against the Vikings on Tuesday, Mar. 3 with a double-header beginning at 1 p.m. Pacific Time. The Yellowjackets then travel to Lacey to start a 4-game series against the Saints on Thursday, Mar. 6 beginning at 1 p.m. Pacific Time. Live stats for all eight games can be found at msubsports.com.