Game 1 - Wayne State 5 Concordia-St. Paul 4
Game 2 - Wayne State 10 Concordia-St. Paul 4
Junior second baseman Blaire Kuhl was 4 for 7 on the day, including the game-winning single in the seventh inning of the first game, to help Wayne State sweep Concordia-St. Paul 5-4 and 10-4 in Northern Sun Conference softball played Saturday afternoon in St. Paul, Minnesota. The Wildcats, ranked sixth in the NCAA Division II Central Region Rankings, are now 34-12 overall and 19-5 in league play while Concordia-St. Paul, ranked fifth in the region, slips to 30-12 overall and 18-6 in the NSIC.
In the first game, the Wildcats rallied from a 4-1 deficit and scored four runs in the final two innings to edge the Golden Bears 5-4. Trailing 2-0 after three innings, WSC got on the board in the fourth inning when Blaire Kuhl singled and scored on Hannah Engelkamp's RBI double to make the score 2-1. Concordia then scored twice in the fourth inning to take a 4-1 lead.
Entering the sixth inning, WSC still trailed 4-1 but mounted a comeback thanks to a big hit from pitcher Katie Goetzinger. Kuhl and Jennifer Radley each singled and then Goetzinger followed with a key two-out, three-run homer to left field that tied the score at 4-4. In the top of the seventh inning, Amy Sandstrom singled and then advanced to third when Kassie Nurton reached base on a Concordia-St. Paul error. Kuhl then singled to right center to drive home Sandstrom with the go ahead run as WSC took a 5-4 lead. Goetzinger then retired the Golden Bears in the bottom of the seventh as WSC hung on for the 5-4 win.
WSC had 10 hits in the win to just five for Concordia-St. Paul. Kuhl finished 3 for 4 with an RBI and two runs scored to lead the 'Cats in hitting. Aeriell Earleywine added two hits while Goetzinger homered and Engelkamp doubled as other key hits for WSC.
Katie Goetzinger (23-8) earned the pitching win, working all seven innings. She allowed four runs on five hits with six strikeouts and one walk.
The second game saw WSC jump out to a 5-0 lead after three innings as the Wildcats rolled to a 10-4 over Concordia-St. Paul. The 'Cats took a 2-0 lead in the second when Jennifer Radley singled and scored on Hannah Engelkamp's two-run homer to center field. WSC took a 5-0 lead in the third as Sam Earleywine produced a run-scoring double followed by an RBI single from Radley for big hits in the inning.
After Concordia-St. Paul scored three runs in the fifth to cut the WSC advantage to 5-3, the Wildcats answered with three runs in the top of the sixth to make the score 8-3. The only two hits in the inning were doubles by Aeriell Earleywine and Amy Sandstrom. WSC then added two runs in the seventh inning with hits, singles by Amber Baird and Aeriell Earleywine, helped the 'Cats take a 10-3 lead. The Golden Bears scored one run in the bottom of the seventh to make the final 10-4.
WSC had 11 hits in the win as each starter had at least one hit. Radley finished 2 for 3 with two RBI's and Aeriell Earleywine was 2 for 4 with two runs scored. Engelkamp homered while Sandstrom, Aeriell and Sam Earleywine each doubled for the Wildcats.
Amber Baird (9-4) was the winning pitcher, allowing four runs on 10 hits over six innings of work with seven strikeouts. Goetzinger relieved in the seventh inning and struck out two batters to seal the win.
The Wildcats will close out the regular season at St. Cloud State Sunday afternoon at 12:00 p.m.
