The Gustavus softball team managed a split with the Saint Mary’s in Winona on Thursday afternoon. The Gusties won game one 3-1 and then saw the Cardinals score twice in the bottom of the seventh inning to claim the 5-4 come-from-behind victory in game two. Julie Mahre led Gustavus at the plate as she went 3-for-7 with two runs scored in the doubleheader.
In game one, the Gusties jumped out to a 1-0 lead when Abby Bernstein delivered a clutch two-out single that scored Rachel Click from second base. In the third inning, Gustavus extended its lead to 2-0 when Audrey Lenoch stroked a two-out double to left field that scored Mary Furlong from third base. In the fifth inning, the Gusties scored their third and final run when Rachel Click hit a ground ball in the infield that allowed Julie Mahre to score from third base. Mahre had tripled to open the inning. St. Mary’s scored its lone run in the bottom of the fifth inning when Jenni Gutterman singled up the middle scoring Jess Weisbrod from third base. Winning pitcher Joyce DeWitz shut the Cardinals down in the sixth and seventh innings allowing the Gusties to claim the important 3-1 victory. DeWitz, who pitched all seven inning for Gustavus, scattered four hits and allowed one earned run, while striking out seven and walking three. With the win, the Gusties extended their winning streak to 12 games.
In game two, Gustavus saw its chances of an important league sweep slip away as the Cardinals scored twice in the bottom of the seventh inning to claim the 5-4 win. The Gusties led 3-1 after three innings and 4-2 after four innings. Gustavus scored two runs in the first inning as Julie Mahre and Mary Furlong opened the game with back-to-back singles and then scored when Rachel Click singled to right field. In the third, the Gusties increased their lead to 3-0 when Audrey Lenoch singled to centerfield scoring Mary Furlong from second base. Saint Mary’s scored one run in the bottom of the third to cut the lead to 3-1, but then Gustavus increased its lead to 4-1 when Whitney Bartolo singled to right field scoring Emily Klein from third base. Saint Mary’s cut the lead to 4-3 with single runs in the bottom of the fourth and bottom of the fifth. In the bottom of the seventh, the Cardinals tied the game at 4-4 when Jenni Gutterman doubled driving in Danielle Geske who had opened the inning with a double. Joyce DeWitz, who started and pitched the first two innings, re-enterd the game to relieve Bree Lindenberg. DeWitz got one out when Jenny Schipp laid down a sacrifice bunt that advanced Gutterman to third base. DeWitz then intentionally walked two Cardinal batters to load the bases with one out. She then struck out Tara Close for the second out. The game ended when DeWitz walked Erin Leone allowing Gutterman to score the winning run for Saint Mary’s. The loss snapped the Gusties 12-game winning streak. Bree Lindenberg, who allowed three runs in two innings of work, was tagged with the loss for Gustavus.
Gustavus remained alone in second place in the MIAC with a record of 12-2, while the Cardinals stayed in third place with a league mark of 13-3. St. Thomas leads the league with a record of 12-0.
The Gusties will host St. Catherine on Saturday at 1:00 pm.