St. Cloud State
33-15, 21-6
Wayne State College
15-33, 12-15
Softball claims chaotic sweep at Wayne State
5/1/2022 4:56:00 PM | Softball
Huskies tie program record for NSIC wins in the victory
WAYNE, NEB. – The rain finally decided to cooperate for the St. Cloud State University softball team. While the sun didn't exactly come out in Wayne, Nebraska, the Huskies were finally able to play the Wayne State Wildcats Sunday afternoon, and the team proved it was worth the wait. St. Cloud State improved to 34-15 overall and 22-6 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) play Sunday afternoon, earning a key 11-0, 6-5 sweep over the Wildcats.
GAME ONE: St. Cloud State (11) vs. Wayne State (0) - 5 innings
Unlike Saturday, the weather sort of decided to cooperate in Wayne, Nebraska on Sunday, allowing the Huskies to at least start game one against the Wildcats. Inspired by the rain, St. Cloud State went ahead and scored three runs in the top of the first, taking a 2-0 lead on an RBI single from Haley McFarlane (Swisher, Iowa / Cedar Rapids Prairie). Two batters later, Sydney Trees (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake) scored on a throwing error by Wayne's third baseman, extending the lead to 3-0 after the top of the first.
St. Cloud State was kept off the board in the second, but the team exploded for four runs on four hits to make it 7-0 after two and a half innings of play. Trees kicked off the hitting and, eventually the scoring, as her lead off single ignited the Huskies big offensive inning which was highlighted by RBIs from Alexandra Pinkowski (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake), Sophie culhane (Maple Grove, Minn. / Maple Grove), Maggie Fitzgerald (Richards, Ill. / Oak Lawn) and Raven Vanden Langenberg (Seymour, Wis. / Seymour).
The runs continued to pour in during the fourth inning, as McFarlane blasted a three-run homer to extend St. Cloud State's lead to 10-0 with at least one inning left in the game. The team's 11th run came in the top of the fifth, as Trees capped off a 4-4 game at the plate with an RBI single. Trinity Junker (Lindstrom, Minn. / Chisago Lakes), meanwhile, did yeoman's work on the mound, holding the Wildcats to just three hits in five complete innings of work. Brooke Bowlin (Chaska, Minn. / Holy Family) secured the 11-0 win with a diving catch in the fifth, helping Junker preserve both the shutout and three-hitter.
GAME TWO: St. Cloud State (6) vs. Wayne State (5)
The second game was a wild ride, as the Huskies found themselves in a 1-0 hole after the first three innings of play. The fourth is when things got interesting, both for St. Cloud State and Wayne State. Down 1-0, the Huskies tied the game on an RBI single by Pinkowski, but the Wildcats answered by scoring two runs in the bottom of the inning on two singles, extending their lead to 3-1 after four.
By the time the sixth inning rolled around, it looked like St. Cloud State was simply running out of time to tie or take a lead until super seniors McFarlane and Bowlin took matters into their own hands. McFarlane led the inning off with a double, putting a runner in scoring position with zero outs, and her pinch runner, Tenley Quesnell (Boise, Idaho / Timberline) advanced to third on a wild pitch. Quesnell had to wait, though, until Bowlin's at bat to score, as both she and Pinkowski scored on the left fielder's single up the middle to tie the game at 3-3. Bowlin then gave the Huskies their first lead of game two, coming around from second on a single by Vanden Langenberg to make it 4-3 St. Cloud State after six.
The Huskies added two insurance runs in the top of the seventh, which proved handy in the bottom of the inning. The Wildcats put together yet another scoring threat, scoring two runs on a double and error to cut. Cloud State's lead to 6-5. In the end, it was no harm, no foul for the Huskies, as Lauren Kirchberg (Columbus, Wis. / Columbus) struck out the final batter of the inning, securing the 6-5 win and her third save of the season.
TOP HUSKIES
- Sydney Trees (Prior Lake, Minn. / Prior Lake) was the top hitter for the Huskies against Wayne State, as she wet went 4-4 in game one with three runs and one RBI and 3-4 in game two.
- Haley McFarlane (Swisher, Iowa / Cedar Rapids Prairie) closed game one with a team-leading five RBI thanks to her three-run homer and went 2-4 at the plate in game two.
- Trinity Junker (Lindstrom, Minn. / Chisago Lakes) improved to 17-6 and pitched her ninth shutout of the season, throwing five complete innings of work in Wayne, Nebraska on Sunday.
- Emma Eickhoff (Becker, Minn. / Becker) earned her tenth win in the circle, while Lauren Kirchberg (Columbus, Wis. / Columbus) earned the save
UP NEXT
St. Cloud State will close the regular season against #12 Augustana University on Monday, May 2. The Huskies and Vikings are set to square off at 12:00 p.m. CT in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Junker, Trinity (17-6)
L: Carraher, Callie (4-5)
Batting:
HR: McFarlane, Haley 1
RBI: Vanden Langenberg, Raven 1 ; Trees, Sydney 1 ; McFarlane, Haley 5 ; Pinkowski, Alexandra 1 ; Culhane, Sophie 1 ; Fitzgerald, Maggie 1
SF: Fitzgerald, Maggie 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Vanden Langenberg, Raven 1 ; Weinberger, Holly 1 ; Estrada, Jasmin 2 ; Trees, Sydney 3 ; McFarlane, Haley 2 ; Krueger, Lydia 1 ; Pinkowski, Alexandra 1
SB: Weinberger, Holly 1
HBP: McFarlane, Haley 1
Base Running:
HBP: Vidlak, Kim 1
