ST. PAUL, MINN. – There is nothing sweeter than revenge, and the St. Catherine University softball team is definitely discovering that adage during the 2018 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Playoffs. Less than 24 hours after the Wildcats avenged their first conference loss of the 2018 regular season, they were able to avenge their last. St. Kate's upended the No. 2 seed College of Saint Benedict 4-2, advancing to the winner's bracket of the conference tournament for the third consecutive season.
 
The victory was certainly sweet for the Wildcats, as they suffered their first and only conference loss of the season at the hands of the Blazers just three days earlier. However, unlike on Tuesday, it was St. Kate's that jumped out to the early lead, as the Wildcats scored two runs in the top of the first to take an early 2-0 lead over Saint Ben's. Junior left fielder Anna Hinderaker (Rosemount, Minn. / Rosemount) opened the game with a leadoff double then reached third on a fielding error by Blazer shortstop Sara Wennerstrand. She then scored on a wild pitch by Saint Ben's Ally Hjort to put St. Kate's ahead 1-0.
 
Kylie Macziewski (Bloomington, Minn. / Jefferson) scored during the very next at bat, as first year designated player Alyssa Wicks (Blaine, Minn. / Anoka) came up with a big sacrifice fly to left field, allowing the speedy shortstop to score easily from third base to put the Wildcats ahead 2-0.
 
With the 2-0 lead, it was senior pitcher Krista Flugstad's (Bloomington, Minn. / Jefferson) to keep the powerful Blazer offense off the scoreboard, which is exactly what she did. Flugstad gave up just two earned in seven complete innings of work and kept Saint Ben's scoreless until the bottom of the seventh inning. Of course, that doesn't mean the Blazers didn't threaten multiple times in the game. In fact, it looked like Saint Ben's might, at the very least, cut St. Kate's lead in half in the bottom of the first, as leadoff hitter Kate Demming reached on an infield single and made it all the way to third with one out. However, Flugstad remained calm, getting Emily Antony to strike out swinging and Wennerstrand to fly out to Jenna George (Ellsworth, Wis. / Ellsworth) to preserve the Wildcats 2-0 lead.
 
Saint Ben's relief pitcher Alex Smith managed to keep St. Kate's off the board until the top of the fourth when the team extended its lead to 3-0. Catcher Sammie Galvez (Gilbert, Ariz. / Williams Field) and Amber Montero (Circle Pines, Minn. / Centennial) opened the inning with back-to-back singles to put runners on second and first with no outs, prompting head coach Colleen Powers to put Gabby Nordman (Cloquet, Minn. / Denfield) at second as a pinch runner. Nordman, though, didn't exactly have to run all that much, as Hinderaker hit a ground rule double to right field two batters later to put the Wildcats ahead 3-0.
 
Of course, St. Kate's wasn't satisfied with a 3-0 lead and scored another run in the top of the seventh to make it 4-0. This time, it was the Bloomington due of Macziewski and Claire Woebke (Bloomington, Minn. / Jefferson) who provided the hit and run, as Macziewski opened the inning with a base hit bunt then scored on Woebke's double to center field to put the Wildcats ahead 4-0.
 
Even with the 4-0 lead, Flugstad and St. Kate's still needed to get three outs against Saint Ben's always dangerous offense. It looked like Flugstad struck pinch hitter Olivia Olson out looking, but the umpire called ball four to put a runner on first with no outs. The very next batter popped out to Ashley Sis (Brooklyn Park, Minn. / Osseo) at first, before second baseman Claire Boatman hit a two-run shot over HInderaker's head to cut the Wildcats lead to 4-2.
 
It looked like the Blazers were on a roll, as Demming reached first with an infield hit to, once again, put a runner on first, this time with one out. However, Flugstad remained calm and used her defense to get Saint Ben's two and three batters out to clinch the 4-2 lead for St. Kate's.
 
Galvez and Montero both went 2-3 at the plate for St. Kate's, while Hinderaker was 2-4 with two doubles, one of which was nearly a home run. Macziewski went 1-3, scoring two of the Wildcats four runs, while Woebke was 1-3 with an RBI.
 
Thanks to the win, St. Kate's advances to the winner's bracket of the MIAC Playoffs for the third consecutive season and improves its overall record to 26-11. The Wildcats will take on top-seeded St. Thomas at 11 a.m. in St. Paul, Minnesota, and the winner will automatically advance to Sunday's championship game. Tickets are $8 for adults and $3 for students, and MIAC passes will be accepted at the gate.