MORRIS, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Morris softball team moved into first place in the UMAC all by itself on Saturday, winning a battle of conference unbeatens over the University of Wisconsin-Superior, 10-2, in five innings. With their 14th straight win, the Cougars have reached 20 wins in a season for just the second time, joining the 2014 squad as they improve to 20-9 (7-0 UMAC).
The game started well for the visitors, with Larissa Snyder scoring on an Ellie Macal single in the top of the first. The Cougars were quick to answer, however, with
Sierra Stevens leading off the home half of the first with a triple, followed by a fielder's choice from
Alice Wilkinson in which she reached and Stevens made it home to knot the score at 1-1. Later in the inning,
Skyla Bristol brought Wilkinson in with a sacrifice fly to stake Minnesota Morris to a 2-1 advantage.
MyKenzie Leccia made it a 2-2 contest with the first at-bat of the second inning, sending a solo homer over the fence to bring UW-Superior even.
Alyssa Thornton (9-3) settled in from there, retiring every Yellowjacket hitter except when Zoe Thomson reached on an error in the third.Â
Minnesota Morris took the lead for good in the bottom of the second. After
Athena Grimley walked to lead off the inning, she advanced on an
Olivia Diver sac bunt and a wild pitch before an
Anna Athey sac fly brought her in. That 3-2 edge grew to 5-2 in the third inning on RBIs from
Tori Nichols and Diver.Â
The Cougar lead was still 5-2 with two down and Grimley aboard in the bottom of the fifth inning when the offense exploded for four hits and three walks to plate five runs and end the game early. Stevens, Thornton, and Bristol all had hits before Grimley collected her second single of the inning to end it by driving in Thornton and making it 10-2.
Thornton went the distance and allowed just two hits while striking out one. Bristol went 3-for-3 on the day, while Stevens was 3-for-4.Â
Minnesota Morris and UW-Superior close out their three-game series on Sunday with a doubleheader at the Morris Softball Complex beginning at 11 a.m.
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