Release Courtesy of Matt Higgins – MIAC Assistant Executive Director
Bloomington, Minn. – Sunday, Gustavus Adolphus College captured its first Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Softball Playoffs championship with a dramatic 4-3 win in the title game over the University of St. Thomas. Monday, the good times continued for the Gusties as pitcher Sarah Rozell (Sr., Lakeville, Minn.) was named the tournament’s MVP to lead a group of six Gustavus players named to the All-Tournament Team.
Rozell was brilliant on the mound throughout the tournament, as she appeared in all three games and didn’t allow a single run. Her final stat line for the tournament included a 2-0 record with no runs and five strikeouts while allowing just three hits – one in each game – and one walk. She was the winning pitcher in both the semifinal and championship-game wins over St. Thomas.
The Gustavus senior pitcher started by throwing a scoreless inning of relief with one hit and no walks in Friday’s 6-0 win over Hamline. She had a similar line in the championship game, as she worked the final two-thirds of an inning, allowing no runs on one hit, and she earned the win when her team rallied for two runs in the bottom of the seventh to earn a walk-off 4-3 win to claim the title.
However, her best performance came Saturday, as she dominated in a 6-0 win over St. Thomas. Rozell threw a complete-game, one-hit shutout. She only walked one batter and struck out five, and only faced 22 hitters – one more than the minimum. Rozell took a perfect game into the fourth after retiring the first 12 batters in order. Neither of the Tommies’ two base runners advanced farther than first, and Rozell may have been at her best in the final innings, as all five of her strikeouts came over the final eight outs of the game.
Rozell was joined by five teammates on the 12-player All-Tournament Team. Senior outfielder Paige Breneman, sophomore pitcher Hannah Heacox, senior infielder Kailey Morgan, junior outfielder Jessica Williams and sophomore designated hitter Jena Willis were all recognized for their roles in the Gusties’ first Playoff title. Both of Gustavus’ pitchers – Rozell and Heacox – each earned their second career All-Tournament Team honor, as Rozell was also honored as a first-year player in 2012, and Heacox is a repeat pick from the 2014 team.
St. Thomas had its reign as MIAC Playoff champ come to an end after winning each of the first 11 MIAC Playoff titles, but the Tommies had an impressive run to reach Sunday’s championship as the No. 4 seed. UST had four players selected for the All-Tournament Team, led by senior pitcher/outfielder Kendra Bowe, who caps her stellar career with a four-straight All-Tournament Team selection, and she was the Playoffs’ MVP as a rookie in 2012. Joining Bowe on the squad was senior outfielder Annie Boyer, junior catcher Micaela Trainor and senior infielder McKenzie Wergin.
Bethel, which hosted the tournament after claiming its first MIAC regular-season championship in 2015, finished in third place and scored the final two selections on the All-Tournament Team. Junior catcher Caroline Kivisto earned her second-straight All-Tournament Team honor and was joined on the squad by junior outfielder Abbie Bircher.
The All-Tournament Team was selected by the four head coaches who competed in the 2015 MIAC Softball Playoffs. To re-live the action of the 2015 MIAC Softball Playoffs, the tournament’s home page includes complete scores, stats, recaps, photo galleries, videos and more from an outstanding three days of MIAC softball.