MORRIS, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Morris softball team had a good showing at the plate on Sunday, but the University of Wisconsin-Superior was able to emerge with 14-7 and 9-7 wins. The losses sink the Cougars to 10-20 (4-8 UMAC), while the Yellowjackets move to 19-5 (9-1 UMAC).

Minnesota Morris is back home at Big Cat Stadium on Tuesday afternoon, hosting Martin Luther College in a doubleheader starting at 3:30 p.m.

Game 1: UW-Superior 14, Minnesota Morris 7
Minnesota Morris grabbed a 4-1 lead after one inning against UW-Superior ace Tayler Kraemer, only for some defensive lapses to turn the tables and allow the Yellowjackets to pull away for the win.

A potent UW-Superior attack showed what it was capable of by plating a run right away in the top of the first, but Minnesota Morris answered back. Sierra Stevens was hit by a pitch and Brenna Mahoney worked a walk before Tori Nichols singled to drive in Stevens and knot the score up. A wild pitch gave the Cougars a 2-1 lead and starting pitcher Adrianna Johnson then helped her own cause with a RBI single later in the inning to make it 3-1. The Yellowjackets committed an error at the end of the first that allowed another run to race home for UMN Morris to make it 4-1 after one.

That lead lasted only until the top of the second. Three hits and a Cougar error in the inning paved the way to three UW-Superior runs that tied the score at 4-4. Minnesota Morris stemmed the tide in the top of the third however, then retook the lead in the bottom of the third as Johnson singled to keep the inning alive with two down and Nevaeh Polanco followed with a double to drive her in for a 5-4 edge through three.

The Yellowjackets took the lead for good in the top of the fourth, scoring three runs despite only managing a lead-off single. Always aggressive on the basepaths, UW-Superior had tied the game at 5-5 on a bunt and then went on top with MyKenzie Leccia avoiding a tag during a rundown between third and home and Kraemer racing all the way around the bases on the play to make it 7-5.

Another Minnesota Morris error in the top of the fifth created an opportunity for UW-Superior to score three more runs and double up the Cougar, 10-5. 

Late in the game, Alice Wilkinson singled in the bottom of the sixth and Stevens followed her with a two-run blast over the fence in left field to cut the deficit to 10-7. Unfortunately, any hopes of a comeback ended in the top of the seventh when the Yellowjackets loaded the bases with no outs and eventually scored four runs to put the game away.

Johnson (6-8) took the loss, throwing 4.2 innings and giving up 10 runs, though only five were earned. Autumn Theis threw the final 2.1 innings. Johnson went 3-for-4 at the plate with a RBI and a run scored, while Nichols and Theis each had two hits.

Game 2: UW-Superior 9, Minnesota Morris 7
Both teams used the long ball early on in game two before UW-Superior began to pull away. The Yellowjackets scored five runs in the fourth inning and never trailed again, but the Cougars did manage a massive comeback in the bottom of the seventh that came up just short.

Nichols started the scoring in the bottom of the first with a solo shot to left to stake Minnesota Morris to a 1-0 lead. That turned out to be the lone Cougar hit until the fifth inning. In the interim, Ellie Macal tied the contest for UW-Superior with a solo shot of her own in the second inning and a five-hit fourth inning brought five runs home to give the Yellowjackets a 6-1 advantage.

Despite the offensive struggles through the early innings, Minnesota Morris got back into it in the bottom of the fifth when Anna Athey worked a lead-off walk and Anna Baumann smashed a two-run shot to left, making it 6-3. The Cougars also pressured UW-Superior in the sixth, putting two on with no outs before three straight grounders back to the pitcher ended the threat.

In the top of the seventh, Leccia connected on a three-run homer and increased UW-Superior's lead to 9-3. After the Yellowjackets got Stevens out to start the bottom of the seventh, Olivia Losee singled to start a run of three straight hits that left the game at 9-5. That forced the re-entry of Kraemer back to pitch for the second game in a row but she was ineffective to start, walking Polanco and allowing three straight singles that scored two runs and brought the UMN Morris deficit down to two. With the winning run on base, Kraemer was able to preserve the victory by getting a force out at home for the second out and then inducing a grounder back to the pitcher to finish it off.

Morgan Wilhelm threw a complete game but took the loss to fall to 3-8 on the season. Nichols went 3-for-3 at the plate in the second game, with Baumann collecting two hits and three RBIs.