LEESBURG, Fla. (
csssaints.com) – If this was the end of the 2020 season, the St. Scholastica softball team went out in style, pulling out a pair of extra-inning wins on Friday over Hood College (Md.) and Juniata College (Pa.) at The Spring Games.
CSS 5, Hood 4 (F/8)
The Saints jumped out an early lead when
Olivia Howe (Scandia, Minn./Forest Lake HS) drove in
Nicole Anders (Port Angeles, Wash./Sequim HS). CSS made it a 2-0 lead in the second inning when
Josie Fourre (Albany, Minn./Albany HS) scored on a
Hannah Thul (Superior, Wis./Superior HS) single.
After the Blazers (2-9) scored a run in the third inning, the Saints made it a two-run margin again in the fifth following a
Kari Breuer (White Bear Lake, Minn./White Bear Lake HS) RBI single. However, Hood took advantage of some CSS errors in the sixth inning and was able to push three runs across to take its first lead at 4-3.
The Saints were then down to their final out in the top of the seventh with the tying run on first. After Breuer was hit-by-a-pitch, a misplay by Blazers allowed
Sydney Plemel (Sauk Rapids, Minn./Sauk Rapids-Rice HS) to score from second base to tie the game at 4-4. The Blazers went down in order in the bottom frame and the contest went to extra innings.
St. Scholastica took a 5-4 lead in the top of the eighth when on a steal attempt with runners on the corners; Hood was unable to handle the throw down to second, which allowed
Megan Hautajarvi (Duluth, Minn./Duluth Denfeld HS) to score from third. The Blazers then had runners at the corners with one out in the bottom of the eighth when a fly ball was caught by a diving Anders in left, who then doubled off the runner at third to end the game.
Haley Rosenthal (Mahtomedi, Minn./Mahtomedi HS) earned the win in relief, pitching the final 2.2 innings. Howe, who started the game in the pitcher's circle, led the team offensively with three hits.
Kayla Christopherson (Zimmerman, Minn./Zimmerman HS (Itasca CC)) and Anders also had a pair of hits.
CSS 4, Juniata 3 (F/8)
The Saints were limited to just five hits, but rallied twice to defeat the Eagles 4-3 in walk-off fashion.
Juniata (1-8) led 2-0 entering the bottom of the fourth. Howe led off the bottom of the fourth with a home run to centerfield to make it 2-1. Christopherson tied the game up at 2-2 in the fifth inning with a double to score
Alex Wurzer (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Simley HS).
Both teams put runners on third base in the sixth inning, but the score remained 2-2 and the contest went to extra innings. The Eagles had one run come across in the top of the eighth to take a 3-2 lead.
St. Scholastica quickly tied the game when Anders ripped a double to bring in Christopherson. After Anders was moved over to third on a groundout, she would score on a wild pitch to give the Saints a 4-3 victory.
Rosenthal struck out six to earn the victory. Howe again led the offense, going 2-for-2 at the plate.
What's Next
The Saints are now 7-7 for the 2020 season. The NCAA came out on Thursday announcing the cancellation of the Spring Championships due to COVID-19. The Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) is still in discussions on how to proceed with the spring sport season.
If this was the end of the Saints' season,
Kayla Christopherson (Zimmerman, Minn./Zimmerman HS (Itasca CC)),
Toni Bishop (Roseville, Minn./Roseville HS),
Karissa Ratcliff (North Branch, Minn./North Branch HS) and
Megan Hautajarvi (Duluth, Minn./Duluth Denfeld HS) may have played their final collegiate games.
To keep up-to-date with St. Scholastica Athletics and the CSS softball program; keep checking csssaints.com.
