The Gustavus softball team picked up its third and fourth conference wins of the season with a sweep of Hamline on Thursday afternoon in St. Paul. The Gusties defeated the Pipers by identical scores of 8-3 in games one and two. Gustavus improves to 12-6 overall and 4-0 in the MIAC with the wins, while Hamline drops to 1-19 overall and 0-8 in the MIAC.
Game One
As they have made a habit of doing lately, the Gusties put runs on the scoreboard in the first inning, taking a 5-0 lead after the top of the first. Kate Rentschler knocked out her second home run of the season to put Gustavus up 3-0, bringing across Kailey Morgan and Brittany Brenke on the blast. Carly Klass singled later in the inning to drive in Sam Breneman and MacKenzie Dalton, giving Gustavus a 5-0 lead.
In the top of the fourth inning, Brenke belted her first home run of the season, scoring in Lisa Klass on the dinger and giving Gustavus a 7-0 lead.
Hamline cut the lead to 7-3 on one swing in the bottom of the fourth. Bethany Hine knocked out a two-out, three-run home run to cut the lead to four runs.
Caitlin Whitney brought the score to a final in the top of the seventh inning, scoring on a Hamline error.
Gustavus outhit Hamline 10-to-8 in the contest. Brenke led the way at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two runs and two RBI. Morgan and Breneman both went 2-for-4 with one run.
Kate Rentschler picked up her seventh win of the season on the hill, allowing three runs on eight hits in a complete-game. Rentschler, who also went 1-for-3 with a run and three RBI at the plate, is now 7-2 (2-0 MIAC) with an ERA of 2.15.
Game Two
Gustavus got on the board first in game two as well, scoring once in the first inning to take a 1-0 lead. After Brenke doubled to left field, Morgan singled to bring her across and give Gustavus the early lead.
After an RBI single by Sarah Rozell in the top of the fourth inning gave Gustavus a 2-0 lead, Hamline responded with a run in the bottom of the inning to cut the Gustie advantage to 2-1.
The fourth inning was a lead-in to some back-and-forth scoring between Gustavus and Hamline. The Pipers tied the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the fifth inning, and Gustavus gained the lead back 3-2 in the top of the sixth when MacKenzie Dalton singled to center to plate Jen Ulmen. Hamline would not go down without a fight, answering with a run in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game at 3-3 heading into the final inning.
Gustavus broke the game open in the top of the seventh with five runs on four hits to bring the game to a final at 8-3. Morgan and Ulmen both notched RBI hits in the inning, while a two-run home run by Dalton gave Gustavus a five-run edge.
Morgan finished 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI, while Dalton went 2-for-4 with one run, three RBI, and a home run. Ulmen also had a big game at the plate, going 2-for-3 with two runs, two RBI, and one double.
Sarah Rozell picked up the win, going six innings and giving up three runs on six hits. Rozell is now 6-2 (2-0 MIAC) on the year with an ERA of 2.78.
The Gustavus softball team will make its home debut on Friday, April 6 against Concordia. First pitch for Friday’s doubleheader against the Cobbers is scheduled for 12:00 p.m.