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L, 9-3
L, 8-3
Mankato, Minn. – The Minnesota Morris softball team was swept in Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) action on Apr. 9, falling 9-3 and 8-3 to Bethany Lutheran.
Originally scheduled to be Morris (4-12, 1-2 UMAC) home games, the coaches decided last week to play the games at Bethany Lutheran (6-9, 3-0 UMAC) after it was understood that UMM's field would not be ready.
The host Vikings knocked out a combined 22 hits over the two games, while limiting the Cougars to just nine. They also took advantage of six Cougar errors over the doubleheader, finishing with five total unearned runs.
Kaitlyn Randall (Concord, Calif.) and Kelli Hamilton (Delano, Minn.) suffered the losses for the Cougars respectively, with each seeing their record drop to 2-5.
In the first game, Randall only made it through 4.1 innings, and despite her eight strikeouts, allowed nine hits and seven runs (four earned). In a troublesome fifth inning seven of the first eight batters reached base, and five hits Randall allowed in the inning were magnified by a pair of Cougar errors that led to six Viking runs.
Hamilton was unable to make it out of the third in the second game, allowing seven hits and four runs – two earned – in her 2.1 innings of work.
The Cougars were able to avoid the big inning in the second game, but saw the Vikings score two runs each in the second and third, as well as a three in the sixth.
Tara Thielke (Hancock, Minn.) led the way at the plate with three hits on the day, going 3-for-4 with two RBI in the opener. She keeps her season average at the .600 mark, finishing the day at the only Cougar with a multiple-hit game. She finished the second game 0-for-3, ending a five-game hitting streak where she logged multiple hits in each game.
Diane Blommel (Grey Eagle, Minn.) and Heather Briese (Fergus Falls, Minn.) each finished with one hit in each game to end the day with two apiece. Blommel now has a season high four-game hitting streak, and has finished without a hit just four times all season.
The Cougars next hit the field on Apr. 12 at Martin Luther, before returning home on Apr. 15 and 16 to host Northwestern and Crown respectively. Games begin at 3:00 p.m. on Friday and 1:00 p.m. on Saturday.
