After having its previous home opener canceled due to inclement weather, the St. Catherine University softball team was ready to finally play in front of a home crowd as it returned to Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) play against St. Olaf College. Not only did the Wildcats have to battle the Oles, but they were up against very cold and rainy conditions in their series split with a 7-6 eight-inning loss and 7-3 victory Tuesday afternoon in St. Paul.
The Wildcats opened game one in commanding fashion with a 5-0 lead after three innings of play. In the bottom of the second,
Ashley Sis (Brooklyn Park, Minn./Osseo) and
Jessi Tyminski (Champlin, Minn./Totino-Grace) each hit two-RBI home runs to give the Wildcats a 4-0 lead. Then, in the fifth,
Kylie Macziewski (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) drove in
Maggie Germscheid (Mahtomedi, Minn./Mahtomedi) to push the lead to 5-0.
Defensively, the Wildcats were able to hold off the Oles until the fifth inning when Brooke Paradise drove in their first run of the game. In the sixth, the Oles scored on a dropped fly ball to pull within three before stringing together a series of plays to tie the game in the top of the seventh inning at 5-5.
The Wildcats had no answer in the bottom of the inning and then gave up a two-run homer to Jessica Bentley which allowed the Oles their first lead of the game at 7-5. IN the bottom of the extra inning, the Wildcats had multiple runners reach base and
Claire Woebke (Bloomington, Minn./Jefferson) even brought in a run with a single up the middle. However, they could only cut the lead to 7-6 in suffering their first conference loss of the season.
In game two, the Wildcats got off to another good start when Macziewski hit a two-RBI double to bring
Megan Lindenfelser (Nowthen, Minn./Anoka) and
Michaela Bruns (
Elk River, Minn./Elk River) home for a 2-0 lead. The Oles responded with a run in the second inning before Paradise hit a two-run home run to put the Wildcats down 3-2.
After two scoreless innings, the Wildcats finally made a comeback as Lindenfelser cranked a double to bring Woebke home to tie the game. Then, Bruns scored on a fielding error by the Oles, before Macziewski recorded her fourth RBI of the day bringing Lindenfelser home. Flugstad then singled through the right side to bring Sis home to give the Wildcats a 6-3 lead.
As darkness set in, the Wildcats managed to hold off the Oles and then added one more run on a RBI single from Flugstad for the Wildcats' third MIAC win of the season.
Flugstad finished the day 4-for-7 with a double, a walk and two RBI to lead the Wildcats at the plate. In addition to her home run, Tyminski had another hit and led the Wildcats with three walks between both contests. Her home run was also the sixthof her career which moves her to No. 8 all-time at St. Kate's for career homers.
Donielle Kurvers (Monticello, Minn./Monticello) and Robyn Rohr (Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North) each picked up a hit, while Michaela Thielfoldt (Cottage Grove, Minn./Park) and Hailey Kuhl (Red Wing, Minn./Red Wing) each scored a run.
Kailee Berquam (Kenyon, Minn./Kenyon-Wanamingo) earned her fourth win of the season on the mound for the Wildcats in game two. She allowed just one earned run on five hits and struck out two Ole batters. Flugstad recorded her sixth complete game of the season in the series opener.
With the split the Wildcats improve to 16-4 on the season and 3-1 in the MIAC. They are scheduled to face Gustavus Adolphus College Wednesday for a MIAC doubleheader. Games begin at 3:30 p.m. in St. Peter, Minnesota. Wildcat Softball on FacebookWildcats on TwitterWildcats on Facebook
