Box Score 1 |
Box Score 2 MEQUON, Wis. – The Wisconsin Lutheran College softball team split a doubleheader against Concordia University Wisconsin on Sunday at CUW Softball Field, winning 4-2 in eight innings, before falling 6-1 in the nightcap. With the win and two Marian University losses, WLC clinched the sixth and final seed in the 2013 Northern Athletics Conference Tournament, its first appearance since the 2008 season.
The first game remained tied 0-0 until the bottom of the fourth when Concordia Wisconsin was able to break through for two runs on back-to-back homeruns. It took until the seventh for the Warriors to get their first hit, but they reached the scoreboard with two runs to tie the game.Kendra Thomas (Jenison, Mich./Jenison) doubled home Jenny Rechlicz (West Allis, Wis./Nathan Hale) for WLC's first run, and Alex Hackel (Crete, Ill./Illinois Lutheran) came home on Dayan Gacgacao's (Chicago, Ill./Whitney Young) sacrifice bunt to tie the game at 2-2.
In the seventh, two Concordia runners reached base, but Thomas left them stranded to send the game into extra innings. After coming through in the pitcher's circle, Thomas showed off her offense in the eighth, singling home Bekah Shellberg (Burlington, Wis./Catholic Central) and Tara Degl'Innocenti (Lisle, Ill./Naperville North) for the deciding 4-2 advantage.
Thomas tossed all 8.0 innings allowing just two earned runs to pick up her 13th win of the season. At the plate, she finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs.
Jamie Schuh took the loss, letting in four earned runs in 7.1 innings. Cara Landherr went 2-for-4 with an RBI and run scored.
In game two, it was Concordia which scored first again, pushing two runs across in the third. WLC was able to cut its deficit in half in the fifth on a Jinny Curtis (Muskego, Wis./Wisconsin Lutheran) RBI triple that plated Lauren Mantz (West Bend, Wis./Kettle Moraine Lutheran).
Concordia responded with two more runs in its half of the fifth to extend the lead to 4-1, and added two more in the sixth. The Warriors couldn't work any late-inning magic in this game as they fell 6-1.
Libby Larsen (Menasha, Wis./Menasha) took the loss, surrendering six earned runs in 6.0 innings. Curtis finished a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with one RBI, while Mantz was 1-for-4 with a run scored.
Melissa Perkins allowed just five hits and one earned run in 7.0 innings to earn the victory. Landherr drove in three runs on 1-for-3 hitting for the Falcons (25-15, 17-7 NAC).
WLC (18-16, 12-10 NAC) plays its final regular season conference doubleheader on Monday in Fond du Lac, Wis., against Marian (10-24, 8-14 NAC). First pitch from Smith Fields is scheduled for 3 p.m. Fans unable to attend the games can follow live stats atwww.wlcsports.com. Looking ahead to the NAC Tournament, the Warriors will face third-seeded Dominican University (27-11, 19-5 NAC) on Thursday at 12 p.m. at Alverno Field in Milwaukee.
