Waverly, Iowa - The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse softball team split a non-conference doubleheader at Wartburg College (Iowa) Thursday afternoon at Lynes Field. The Knights took the opener, 4-3, before the Eagles won the nightcap, 13-5 in six innings. UWL is now 8-12 on the season while Wartburg (Iowa) is 10-9.
The games were moved to Waverly after UWL's North Field was unplayable. UWL was the designated home team in Thursday's doubleheader.
In the opener, Warburg (Iowa) took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first. Sydney Fellows and Ella Link walked with two outs and Fellows scored as Tarah Wehde reached on an error.
UWL responded in the bottom of the inning with
Brooke Howard's triple to lead-off and she later scored on an
Abbey Bosch single. The Eagles left the bases-loaded in the inning.
The Knights tallied three runs in the second. Reagan Hassel started the inning with a bunt single and went to third on Carley Bredar's double. Hassel scored on Kaylie Springer's single to give Wartburg (Iowa) a 2-1 lead. Bredar scored on Lili Alvarado's sacrifice bunt and Springer came in on Fellows' ground out.
UWL cut it to 4-2 in the bottom of the third.
Cristin Casey walked and scored on
Kyra Lard's double. The Eagles stranded the bases-loaded in the bottom of the fifth. In the bottom of the seventh, Casey singled with one out and stole second. After a strikeout, Bosch delivered a two-out double to make it 4-3, but pinch-hitter
Nicole Zoellner flied out to right field to end the contest.
UWL finished with six hits as Bosch went 3-for-4 with two RBI. Casey scored twice.
Carmen Follette (0-2) suffered the loss, going 3.0 innings, allowing four hits, four runs (three earned) and three walks.
Elise Weinzierl pitched 4.0 innings, allowing two hits while striking out five in the game.
Wartburg (Iowa) also totaled six hits. Bredar finished 2-for-3 with a run. Ashley Nelson (4-3) earned the victory, pitching 7.0 innings, allowing four hits, two runs and three walks with seven strikeouts.
In the nightcap, Wartburg (Iowa) scored a pair of runs in the top of the first on bases-loaded walks by Jenna Weibenga and Reegan Deputy. UWL recorded a six-run bottom of the first. Lard's two-run home run scored Casey, who had walked in the inning, to tie the game at 2-2. Bosch walked and came in on
Marissa Pease' two-run home run to give UWL a 4-2 lead.
Ava Jaehnke scored on a
Anna Jensen RBI single to make it 5-2 and
Maddy Bornbach scored on
Lindsay Steien's RBI ground out.
The Knights cut it to 6-4 in the top of the third, but the Eagles responded with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning on a Jensen RBI double and Steien run-scoring single.
In the bottom of the fourth, UWL took a 9-4 lead. Lard reached on an error and came in on another as Bosch reached on an error.
Wartburg (Iowa) cut it to 9-5 in the top of the fifth on a Hassel single. UWL scored three times in the bottom of the fifth on Lard's three-run home run. The Eagles ended the game with a run in the bottom of the sixth as Steien scored on Zoellner's pinch-hit single.
UWL finished with 15 hits as Howard went 3-for-4 with one run. Lard went 2-for-3 with two home runs, three runs and five RBI. Bornbach, Jensen and Steien each had two hits with Bornbach scoring twice. Jensen and Steien each had two RBI. Casey scored twice. Weinzierl (2-4) picked up the win, going 4.0 innings, allowing nine hits and three runs with two walks.
Remington Stark started for the Eagles, pitching 2.0 innings, allowing three hits, two runs and three walks while striking out three.
Wartburg (Iowa) recorded 12 hits with Hassel going 3-for-4. Wiebenga, Deputy and Bredar each had two hits. Grace Madlock (0-1) took the loss, pitching 0.1 of an inning, allowing three hits, four runs and two walks.
UWL returns to action Saturday, March 30 with a non-conference doubleheader at MSOE (Wis.) at 2 p.m.
