sports

UMC SOFTBALL SWEPT BY ST. CLOUD STATE

April 2, 2024

The University of Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles Softball team was swept by the St. Cloud State Huskies at the UMC Softball Field in Crookston. St. Cloud State took the first game 7-1 and the second one 3-2.

GAME ONE –
In the first inning, St. Cloud State got off to a fast start, getting two runs in on a two-out single to take a quick 2-0 lead. UMC’s Rayna French (Fresh La Salle, Manitoba) got a double in the bottom of the inning, but UMC couldn’t drive her home as St. Cloud State had a 2-0 lead after the first inning.

In the second inning, both teams went three up and three down as the Huskies led 2-0 after two. In the third, St. Cloud State added to their lead with a solo home run. In the bottom of the third, UMC’s Sophie Juntunen (Soph St. Michael, MN) got on with a single, followed by Maddie Shwaluk (Sr. Portage la Prairie, Manitoba), who got on with a fielder’s choice. Paige Shwaluk (Sr. Portage la Prairie, Manitoba) used a sacrifice bunt to move the runners over to put runners on second and third with only one out. Then, Whitnee Curry (Jr. Lincoln, NE) drove in a run with a base hit to make it 3-1 with St. Cloud State still in the lead. UMC couldn’t drive in any more runs in the inning.

In the fourth inning, the teams went three up and three down again before St. Cloud State cashed in on a three-run home run to break open a 6-1 lead. The Huskies got three straight hits after the home run and drove home another run to extend their lead up to 7-1. UMC got out of the inning but, in the bottom of the fifth, couldn’t score as the Golden Eagles still trailed 7-1.

In the sixth inning, St. Cloud State drew a walk and then got a single with one out but couldn’t drive them home. UMC was unable to respond in the bottom of the inning as they still trailed 7-1. In the seventh inning, St. Cloud State got a two-out single and stole second, but the Huskies couldn’t add to their lead. In the bottom of the seventh, UMC’s Shaelyn Grant (Sr. Grand Junction, CO) got a single to start the inning. Grant advanced to second on the next at-bat but UMC couldn’t drive her in as St. Cloud State took the first game 7-1.

GAME ONE BOX SCORE, CLICK HERE

Game 1	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
SCSU	2	0	1	0	4	0	0	7	11	0
UMC	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	4	1

For UMC-
Whitnee Curry- 1-3, 1 rbi
Sophie Juntunen- 1-2, 1 run

Pitching	IP	H	R	ER	BB	K
Evie Stuck (UMC)	6.0	10	7	7	2	4
Kailee Pollard (UMC)	1.0	0	0	0	0	1
Emma Eickhoff (SCSU) Justyce Porter (SCSU)	4.0 3.0	3 1	1 0	1 0	0 0	4 3

GAME TWO –
In the first inning, St. Cloud State started off with a double before they were able to drive the runner home after a pair of ground outs. UMC would get the final out but trail 1-0. UMC got a hit in the bottom of the first as Curry got a single, but the Golden Eagles couldn’t score and trailed 1-0 after the first.

In the second inning, the Huskies added to their lead with a solo home run to make it 2-0. UMC got the next three batters out as they headed to the bottom of the second. UMC would get a base hit and a hit-by-pitch to get runners on first and second with one out but popped into a double play to end the second and still trail 2-0.

In the third inning, St. Cloud State got a single and two walks to load up the bases with only one out, but UMC got out of the jam with a pair of flyouts. In the bottom of the third, Shwaluk and Curry each got a single to put runners on first and second with one out. The Golden Eagles struck out before Grant singled to right to drive in Curry and make it 2-1 with St. Cloud State still in the lead. UMC struck out after that and ended the inning.

In the fourth inning, St. Cloud State went three up and three down in the top half of the inning. Juntunen got a single for UMC to lead off the bottom of the fourth, then later in the inning, Reagan Emerick (Jr. Macomb, IL) doubled to put runners on second and third with only one out. UMC struck out on the next two at-bats, leaving the game at 2-1 with the Huskies still leading.

In the fifth inning, both teams went three up and three down. In the sixth, St. Cloud State drew a pair of walks to open up the inning. The runners were moved over to second and third on a wild pitch before the Huskies scored on a sacrifice fly to center to make it 3-1. UMC got out of the inning after another flyout before starting the bottom of the sixth with a pair of hits. The Golden Eagles advanced the runners to second and third on a groundout before getting a single to load up the bases. UMC grounded out on the next at-bat but did score a run to make it 3-2 with St. Cloud State still leading, but UMC couldn’t score for the rest of the inning.

In the seventh inning, St. Cloud State drew a pair of walks before a fielder’s choice put runners on first and third. UMC got out of the jam with a strikeout to keep it a 3-2 game with St. Cloud State still leading. UMC drew a walk to start the bottom of the inning but couldn’t score as St. Cloud State won 3-2.

UMC drops to 8-24 on the year and 1-7 in the NSIC and will travel to Winona State and Minnesota State Mankato this weekend. St. Cloud State improves to 22-12 overall and 5-3 in the NSIC.

GAME TWO BOX SCORE, CLICK HERE