Minnesota Duluth 4  Wayne State 3

Minnesota Duluth 8  Wayne State 4

            The Wayne State Wildcats fell to Minnesota Duluth 4-3 in the first game and 8-4 in the second concluding the NSIC regular season at the Pete Chapman Softball Complex in Wayne. WSC drops to 15-36 and 12-18 in the NSIC while the Bulldogs move to 22-8 in the conference and 37-14 overall.  Wayne State would finish 10th in the NSIC and qualify for the NSIC tournament.
The Bulldogs opened up the scoring with a home run from the first batter of the game, giving Minnesota Duluth a 1-0 lead through one after a quiet first from WSC.
            Wayne State junior Madison Gomez hit a double with one out in the second, but was left stranded after a pair of groundouts to keep the score 1-0.
            UMD singled to start the third, but WSC turned a double play to erase the leadoff single. Minnesota Duluth then hit a two-out two-run homer, increasing the lead to 3-0 through three frames
            Wildcat starter Hadley Chvatal settled in by posting scoreless frames in the fourth, fifth, and sixth.  WSC would get on the scoreboard plating three in the sixth to tie the game at 3-3.
            Wayne State got on the board in the bottom of the sixth when senior Kortney Buresh reached on a Bulldog error. Junior Riley Holmberg drew a walk to put runners on first and second before senior Kim Vidlak hit a double that would score Buresh. The 'Cats weren't done there as sophomore Jenna Etmans hit a single to score Holmberg and Vidlak, knotting the score at 3-3 through six.
            The Wildcats had a throwing error in the top of the seventh, allowing UMD to retake the lead 4-3 on an unearned run.
            The 'Cats weren't able to answer in the seventh, and Minnesota Duluth took the first game by a 4-3 score.
            Minnesota Duluth outhit Wayne State 11-5 in the game with both teams committing an error.
            Junior Hadley Chvatal (2-17) threw a complete game for WSC, allowing four runs (three earned) with four strikeouts.
            Vidlak went 1 for 3 in the game with an RBI and a run scored to lead the 'Cats. Freshman Alle Perea, Holmberg, Etmans and Gomez each added a hit of their own.
 
            It was Wayne State that started the scoring in the second game of the doubleheader with Buresh leading off the game by getting on base as the result of a UMD fielding error. Vidlak moved Buresh over with a groundout. Etmans came through with a two-out double to score Buresh, giving WSC their first lead of the day 1-0 through one.
            Wayne State starter Samantha Felt posted another scoreless frame in the second to keep it 1-0.  With two outs in the bottom of the second, junior Paiton Tornberg reached on a fielding error. Tornberg advanced on a single from graduate student Emily Hale before a Buresh single loaded the bases for Holmberg. Holmberg hit a single to push Wayne State's lead to 2-0 after two.
            Minnesota Duluth answered quickly in the third plating four runs in the third on four hits to make it a 4-2 UMD advantage through three frames after a quiet bottom half from WSC.
            The Bulldogs continued their hot bats, scoring four more runs in the top of the fourth, making the UMD lead 8-2.
            Wayne State used singles from Buresh and Holmberg and a walk from Vidlak to load the bases with one out in the bottom of the fourth. Gomez hit an RBI single to score Buresh, cutting the UMD lead to 8-3 through four.
            Relief pitcher Grace Lucka would toss a scoreless fifth and sixth frame to keep it 8-3 going to the bottom of the sixth after nothing doing in the bottom half of the fifth for the Wildcats.
            With two outs in the bottom of the sixth Vidlak hit her fourth homer of the year making it an 8-4 game heading to the final frame.
            Lucka would again toss her third inning of scoreless work to keep it 8-4.  Wayne State would go 1-2-3 in the bottom half for an 8-4 final.
            The Bulldogs took game two 8-4, while outhitting WSC (10-9).
            Starting pitcher Samantha Felt (8-10) got tagged with the loss, pitching 4.0 innings, allowing eight earned runs with a strikeout. Grace Luka threw 3.0 innings of relief for the Wildcats allowing no runs with four strikeouts.
            Buresh, Holmberg and Etmans all went 2 for 4 in the game, with Buresh scoring two runs. Holmberg, Etmans, Vidlak and Gomez each had an RBI for the 'Cats.
            Wayne State currently sits as the number 10 seed in the NSIC, qualifying for the NSIC Tournament and is awaiting the release of the bracket from the league office Monday evening.