Softball shuts out Macalester, falls to No. 13 St. Thomas in Florida

CLERMONT, Fla. – For the third straight day in Florida, the Concordia University Wisconsin Softball team split a pair of games. Just like yesterday, the Falcons opened with a shutout victory, this time downing Macalester by a 6-0 score. The Falcons then took on another MIAC opponent in game two, No. 13 St. Thomas, but fell by a 12-5 count.

The opener saw freshman Christine Sharon (Cornell, Mich.) run her record in the circle to 2-0 as she delivered five impressive innings. Sharon scattered five hits, while striking out a pair before paving the way for fellow freshman Emily Brekke. Brekke (Waterford, Wis.) threw two scoreless innings to preserve the shutout and the win for the Falcons.

Freshman Haley Spoerl (Salem, Wis.) had a home run in the game for the Falcons, who once in first, three times in the third and once more in the fourth and sixth frames. Sophomore Carly Sobrilsky (Brookfield, Wis.) had two hits and an RBI as did freshman Jamie Reiser (Ingleside, Ill.) who added a double. Sophomore Nicole Bublitz (Brown Deer, Wis.) scored twice, while collecting a pair of hits.

CUW jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first thanks to an RBI single off the bat of Sobrilsky, plating freshman Sadie Strasser (Gladstone, Mich.). The Falcons went up 2-0 on a solo home run from Spoerl in the third and added two more runs in the frame, scored by Sharon and freshman Kaitlin Radue (Valders, Wis.). Sophomore Alexis Holsten (Oshkosh, Wis.) drove in Radue with an RBI sac fly.

Bublitz would score the game's final two runs, including one off an RBI single from Brekke in the top of the sixth.

In the contest against the Tommies, CUW fell behind 10-0 before a five-run bottom of the fifth inning, which avoided the eight-run rule. CUW was down to its final out in the bottom of the fifth before Sobrilsky belted a 3-run home run, plating Spoerl and freshman Lauren Sulikowski (Orland Park, Ill.), making the score 10-5.

Sulikowski was one of three players who recorded pinch hit base hits for the Falcons in the frame as she had an RBI double, plating freshman Allison Peters (Elk Grove, Ill.), who began the frame with a single. Andrea Thiry (Green Bay, Wis.) also had a pinch hit double in the inning for CUW.

The Tommies offense was in full form in the second game as they put three up on the board in both the first and second innings, while adding a pair in the fourth. UST belted three home runs, including two in the first and finished the game with 18 hits. Megan Dupuis and Katie Jo Delisle each hit a roundtripper and drove in three runs, while McKenzie Wergin had three hits from the top of the UST batting order.

Spoerl and Strasser each finished the game with two hits for the Falcons, who were unable to solve the Tommies starting and finishing pitcher, Kendra Bowe. Bowe threw the first four innings before being lifted with a 10-0 lead. She then came back on when the score was 10-5 and finished out the game, throwing a total of 6.1 innings, while not allowing a run. She struck out six in the win.

Junior Melissa Perkins (Park Forest, Ill.) took the loss for CUW, throwing 2.2 innings. Brekke threw two innings in relief, while Sharon came on for 2.1 innings as well.

The Falcons will have an off day tomorrow before returning to the field for two games on Wednesday. CUW will take on Bethel at 1 pm (EST) before doing battle with FDU-Florham at 3.