Softball splits on second day of Kelly Laas

Saturday, February 12

St. Cloud, Minn.

5:00 p.m. CT

St. Cloud State

2-0

University of Sioux Falls (S.D.)

1-3

Sioux Falls

St. Cloud State

Sophie Culhane celebrates as the Huskies score the go ahead run against SMSU.

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

2/12/2022 11:56:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Huskies rally to beat Sioux Falls 7-5

ST. CLOUD, MINN. – The St. Cloud State University softball team split its two games on the second day of the Kelly Laas Softball Tournament. The Huskies won their first game of the evening 7-5 over Sioux Falls before dropping their nightcap with Southwest Minnesota State by a final score of 8-4. With the split, St. Cloud State is now 2-1 overall with two nonconference wins over Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) opponents.

GAME 1: ST. CLOUD STATE vs. SIOUX FALLS

After a long, cold wait in the Husky Dome, St. Cloud State finally faced off against Sioux Falls and faced its first deficit of the 2022 season. After some uncharacteristic defensive snaphoos, the Cougars were able to take a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning. The Huskies quickly evened things at 1-1 in the bottom of the second, as Holly Weinberger (Waconia, Minn. / Waconia) scored on a Haley McFarlane (Swisher, Iowa / Cedar Rapids Prairie) sac fly, before taking a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the third.

Sioux Falls was seemingly inspired by St. Cloud State's offensive efforts, as the Cougars scored three runs of their own in the top of the fifth to tie things up at 4-4. That's when the small ball factor came into play. Brooke Bowlin (Chaska, Minn. / Holy Family) opened the bottom of the fifth with an infield single and promptly stole second before reaching third on a throwing error by the Sioux Falls catcher. The speedster provided just enough distraction to force another Cougar error, allowing Raven Vanden Langenberg (Seymour, Wis. / Seymour) to reach first, before scoring on a Sydney Trees (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake) single for a 5-4 Huskies lead. That wasn't the last run St. Cloud State would score in the inning, as a perfectly placed bunt by Sophie Culhane (Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove) scored Vanden Langenberg from third, completing a perfectly executed sacrifice squeeze.

Sioux Falls cut the Huskies lead back down to one in the sixth inning, but Alexandra Pinkowski (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake) added a little insurance with a solo home run over the right field fence to make it 7-5 entering the seventh. From there, Emma Eickhoff (Becker, Minn. / Becker) made quick work of the Cougar batters, as St. Cloud State's defense secured the victory by gunning down a runner at second base.

GAME TWO: St. Cloud State vs. SMSU

The Huskies fell into an early deficit in their second game against SMSU, as the Mustangs scored runs in the first and second inning to go up 2-0. St. Cloud State answered in a big was in the bottom of the fourth, scoring four runs to gain a 4-2 advantage. The rally started with a walk by Sydney Trees (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake), who scored from first on a throwing error by the Mustangs catcher, cutting the lead to 2-1. Pinch hits from Jasmin Estrada (Litchfield, Minn. / Litchfield) and Maggie Fitzgerald (Oak Lawn, Ill. / Richards) resulted in runs two and three for the Huskies, before a double by Pinkwoski extended St. Cloud State's lead to 4-2 after four.

The Huskies' hopes for a Saturday sweep were derailed in the fifth, as they gave up five runs on four hits and committed two errors, allowing SMSU to take a 5-4 lead. Though St. Cloud State battled, the team was never able to overcome that fifth inning rally by the Mustangs, as the Huskies fell in game two by a final score of 8-4.

TOP HUSKIES

Brooke Bowlin (Chaska, Minn. / Holy Family) went 2-3 at the plate in St. Cloud State's win over Sioux Falls and scored two runs for the Huskies. Alexandra Pinkowski (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake) and Raven Vanden Langenberg (Seymour, Wis. / Seymour) also scored two runs in the victory, while Vanden Langenberg accounted for two RBI.
Lauren Kirchberg (Columbus, Wis. / Columbus) earned her first win of the season in the 7-5 victory over the Cougars, as she pitched three innings of relief to earn the "W".
Sophie Culhane (Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove) and Vanden Langenberg were St. Cloud State's top hitters against SMSU, as both went 2-4 at the plate against the Mustangs.

UP NEXT
The Huskies will close the Kelly Laas Tournament on Sunday, February 13 as they host the same SMSU team in the final game of the tournament. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. in the Husky Dome.