NORTHFIELD, Minn. — The Gustavus softball team opened postseason play at St. Olaf Thursday, winning 7-3 to advance to the MIAC Playoff Semifinals. A five-run first inning propelled the Gusties to their fourth consecutive victory.
The Gusties wasted no time getting on the board, as
Madi Mueller led the game off with a single to left field. A series of Ole throwing errors in the next at-bat scored the senior center fielder and put
Olivia Guggenberger on base.
Kayla Herda stepped up to the plate and belted an RBI single to short, bringing the Gustie lead to 2-0.
Caitlin Olafsson kept things rolling, singling through the left side. A four pitch walk to
Carly Olson loaded the bases with no outs. A fielder's choice threw Herda out at home, but
Greta Dahlen made up the difference, sending an RBI single to left field to score Olafsson. A bases-loaded walk scored the Gusties' fourth run, forcing a pitching change early in the game. Mueller closed the inning out the same way she started it, crushing a single to left to give the Gusties a 5-0 lead after one inning.
The first inning lead would have been enough, but the visitors tacked two more on before the end of the game, one on a
Lauren Lambert RBI single up the middle in the second and the final a Herda RBI double to left center in the top of the seventh. St. Olaf scratched across three total runs, two of which were home runs. The Oles scored one more in the seventh on a single up the middle, but it was far too little and far too late.
The Gusties totaled 12 hits in the quarterfinal, as Mueller, Herda, Olafsson, and Dahlen each chipped in two. Herda finished the game 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI.
Maizie Anderson earned the complete game victory, allowing just two earned runs off eight total hits. Anderson struck out six batters of the 34 she faced, and got her team out of a no-out bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the seventh to seal the win and send her team back to the MIAC Playoff Semifinals.
Gustavus will now face top-seeded Saint Mary's in Winona on Saturday at 11 a.m. Bethel and Saint Benedict will face each other in the second semifinal game, with the winners advancing to the championship Saturday afternoon.
