Junker dazzles in Northern State split

Wednesday, April 20

Aberdeen, SD

1:00 p.m.

St. Cloud State

26-14, 0

Northern State University

10-29, 0

St. Cloud State

Northern State

Trinity Junker tallied 13 strikeouts in the game one win against Northern State

Photo by: Kylie Macziewski

4/20/2022 4:47:00 PM | Softball

Box Score 1 Box Score 2

Huskies win game one 4-0 behind Junker's 13 Ks

ABERDEEN, S.D. – The St. Cloud State University softball team earned a split in its Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) midweek doubleheader at Northern State. The Huskies dominated in every sense in game one, earning a 4-0 victory to snap their losing streak. St. Cloud State was unable to come away with victory in game two's 1-0 loss, as the team's record now stands at 26-15 and 14-5 in NSIC play.

GAME ONE: St. Cloud State (4) vs. Northern State (0)

After two disappointing losses in Winona, the Huskies course corrected in Aberdeen, South Dakota, earning a 4-0 win in game one over the Wolves. St. Cloud State needed to wait, though, until the top of the fifth inning to score its first run. After putting runners on with nothing to show for it, the Huskies capitalized on a scoring opportunity after Alexandra Pinkowski (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake) and Brooke Bowlin (Chaska, Minn. / Holy Family) earned back-to-back hits, putting runners on second and third with one out and Raven Vanden Langenberg (Seymour, Wis. / Seymour) at the plate. Rather than have the shortstop hit, though, head coach Mitch Roberts signaled for the squeeze, which Vanden Langenberg executed to perfection. The senior dropped the bunt down the third base line, allowing Pinkowski to score from third and give the Huskies an early 1-0 lead.

St. Cloud State busted things open in the top of the sixth, as the team scored three runs on two hits and two Northern State errors to extend the lead to 4-0. Holly Weinberger (Waconia, Minn. / Waconia) and Jasmin Estrada (Litchfield, Minn. / Litchfield) both reached base to kick off the inning, putting runners on first and second with zero outs. Their pinch hitters, Madison Spah (Anoka, Minn. / Ramsey) and Madie Pich (Blaine, Minn. / Blaine) would later score on a single by Haley McFarlane (Swisher, Iowa / Cedar Rapids Prairie), making it 3-0 Huskies in the top of the sixth. St. Cloud State's third run of the inning game via Lydia Krueger (Appleton, Wis. / North), whose RBI groundout scored McFarlane to make it 4-0 Huskies.

Trinity Junker (Lindstrom, Minn. / Chisago Lakes) was the true star of the show Wednesday afternoon as she powered herself to her 14th win of the season in dominant fashion. After two rough starts, Junker pitched a gem in the circle, going the distance and surrendered just four hits in seven complete innings of work. Additionally, the Huskies ace tallied 13 strikeouts in the game, her second highest total of the season, propelling St. Cloud State toa 4-0 victory.

GAME TWO: St. Cloud State (0) vs. Northern State (1)

St. Cloud State got out to a slow start in game two, as it was the Wolves who took the early 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first. The Huskies offense also struggled against Meghan Anderson, who tallied nine strikeouts and pitched a no hitter through five innings of play. Vanden Langenberg was the first to record a hit, as her double led off the sixth inning and put a runner in scoring position for St. Cloud State. When Estrada walked two batters later and Sydney Trees (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake) hit a base hit bunt, it looked like the Huskies might even things up or take a lead. Alas, it was not in the cards, as St. Cloud State stranded all three on the bases.

After a scoreless bottom of the inning, the Huskies were down to their final three outs in the top of the seventh. Unfortunately, St. Cloud State was unable to muster the game-tying run, as the Huskies fell by a final score of 1-0.

TOP HUSKIES

Six different Huskies tallied at least one hit in the game one victory, led by Holly Weinberger's (Waconia, Minn. / Waconia) 2-3 performance.
Trinity Junker (Lindstrom, Minn. / Chisago Lakes) was dominant in the circle, pitching seven shutout innings and tallying a conference season high 13 strikeouts in the victory.
Raven Vanden Langenberg (Seymour, Wis. / Seymour) and Sydney Trees (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake) were the lone players to tally hits in game two, both of which occurred in the top of the sixth inning.

UP NEXT
St. Cloud State will play its final home games of the 2022 season this weekend, as the team hosts SMSU and Sioux Falls this upcoming Saturday and Sunday. At this point in time, Saturday's first game against the Mustangs is slated to start at 1:00 p.m. at Selke Field. All updates regarding the Huskies schedule will be announced on social media and the department's official website (www.scsuhuskies.com).