SAINT PETER, Minn. – With each game decided by just one run, the Gustavus softball team earned a dramatic split with St. Scholastica Saturday afternoon, April 19, at the Gustie Softball Field.
The Gusties (18-14, 8-6 MIAC) totaled 10 hits in game one, but left seven on base and batted .363 with runners in scoring position, unable to score in the last five innings of the game for a 6-5 final. That scoreless streak carried over until the bottom of the seventh in game two, when the Gusties forced extra innings with a two-out run.
Breck Carlson was the walk-off hero to earn the split, 3-2.
Gustavus 5, St. Scholastica 6
Early errors proved to be costly for the Gusties, who allowed five unearned runs of six scored. The Saints took an early lead in the first inning, scoring all four with two outs down. After an error put the third batter on base, a pair of back-to-back singles followed by a bases-clearing triple put the Saints up 4-0.
The Gusties' first was just as eventful, placing the first five batters on base and scoring a pair of runs to cut the lead in half. After
Kayla Herda (Sr., Farmington, Minn.) led off with a walk,
Greta Dahlen (Sr., West Des Moines, Iowa) and
Lauren Lambert (Jr., Woodbury, Minn.) hit back-to-back singles to load the bases.
A Saint error in center field scored Herda for her 100th career run, followed by another on a wild pitch.
Caitlin Olafsson (Jr., Woodbury, Minn.) drove in the third on a long triple, while
Taylor Katzenmeyer (Jr., Minnetonka, Minn.) evened the score at four apiece with an RBI single.
The Gusties lost their 5-4 lead, which was awarded thanks to a Saints error, with a pair of solo runs in both the third and fourth innings. St. Scholastica converted on three hits in each frame for the eventual 6-5 final, as both pitchers finished the game with three full scoreless innings.
Olafsson finished 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI, while Dahlen and Lambert each tallied a pair of hits. Herda scored two runs, the first of which marked the 100th of her career.
Ava Hamsund (So., Winona, Minn.) earned the four-inning loss, allowing six runs, one earned, off 10 hits.
Hailey Petzel (Fy., Mankato, Minn.), in three innings of relief, allowed just one hit.
Gustavus 3, St. Scholastica 2 (8 inn.)
St. Scholastica pitcher Lindsey Ewer allowed just four hits for the first six innings of play, keeping the Gusties, who stranded eight more on base in game two, at bay. After two swinging strikeouts delivered by
Maizie Anderson (Jr., Rosemount, Minn.), CSS (10-20, 6-8 MIAC) scored a walked batter on a long double to left.
That run held as the 1-0 lead until the final frame of regulation. Carlson (So., North Mankato, Minn.) led the inning off with a two-pitch single to left. After two quick outs, Dahlen sparked the comeback effort with an RBI single to second to tie the game at one apiece and force extra innings.
The Saints scored one in the top of the eighth on an RBI single to left, but an Olafsson double over the head of the center fielder brought the score deadlocked once more. An error advanced Olafsson to third, while Carlson's bloop single to center brought her home for the 3-2 victory.
Carlson finished 3-for-3 with an RBI and a run in game two, while Olafsson was 2-for-4 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored. Anderson earned the complete game victory, allowing two runs, one earned, off eight hits. She struck out seven batters in 32 at-bats.
The Gusties prepare for three doubleheaders in six days next week, first hosting St. Catherine (14-20, 6-10 MIAC) at home Tuesday, followed by a home series against St. Olaf (17-13, 8-6 MIAC) on Saturday and a trip to St. Joseph for a MIAC match-up against Saint Benedict (17-13, 9-5 MIAC) Sunday, April 27.
