Latest news with #NSICSoftballTournament
Yahoo
03-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Augustana softball rolls Duluth, advances to NSIC title game
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AUGUSTANA) — Top-seeded Augustana turned up the firepower in the fifth inning to break the tie and take down fifth-seeded Minnesota Duluth by a score of 8-2 in the NSIC Softball Tournament semifinals on Friday afternoon at Bowden Field. The Vikings combined for nine hits in six innings of plate action, led by Lexi Lander and Sidney Smart's two hits apiece. Andrea Cain collected two RBI, one homerun, one walk with one hit by pitch while scoring two runs. Ella Cooper led with nine putouts and Norah Christiansen added in three assists. Grace Glanzer continued her dominant season with her 23rd win in the circle after five innings of work. She tallied six strikeouts alongside five fly outs and five groundouts against 18 batters faced and allowed just two hits. Lexi Lander also made an appearance, pitching two innings and downing all six batters in order. The defenses put on a strong showing through the first two innings of action, allowing just one combined runner on base after a drawn walk. The first two hits of the contest came off the Bulldog bats in the top of the third inning where Minnesota Duluth homered and doubled down the right field line to go up 2-0. But then the Augustana bats came alive. Sidney Smart doubled to right center to open up the bottom of the third inning. Andrea Cain made the most of the opportunity like she has all weekend and continued her hot streak with a two-run homerun over the left field fence to tie up the game at 2-2. After each squad was downed in three-up, three-down fashion, the Vikings again exploded in the fifth inning, circling through their entire batting order. Smart sent a single through the left side and soon advanced to second base off a sacrifice bunt from Liz Dierks. Cain joined her on base after drawing a walk to bring Desi Cuevas up to bat. Her shot up the middle scored Smart to break the tie and put herself and Cain in scoring position. A single from Lander through the right side brought in both base runners and made it a 5-3 advantage for the Vikings, forcing a pitching change from Minnesota Duluth. Back-to-back singles from Ashton Dorman and Ella Cooper loaded the bases and was followed by a single, a sacrifice fly and a fielding error to bring in three consecutive runs. The 8-3 lead for Augustana would hold through the final inning and a half of action and push the Vikings season record to 45-9 and 25-3 in NSIC play with 20 straight wins. UP NEXTAugustana has qualified for the NSIC Softball Tournament title game which is set for 12 p.m. on Saturday afternoon. Opponent is still undetermined as Winona State and Minnesota State are still set to face off in the second semifinal game yet today. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
02-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Sixth-inning surge leads Augie past MSU Moorhead
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AUGUSTANA) — Back-to-back homeruns combined with the powerful one-two punch in the circle pushed top-seeded Augustana Vikings over 10th-seeded MSU Moorhead 7-2 in the NSIC Softball Tournament quarterfinals on Thursday afternoon at Bowden Field. The Vikings combined for 11 hits in the affair as Andrea Cain, Ella Cooper and Lexi Lander each went 2-for-3 from the plate and five other Vikings tallied a hit apiece. Cain and Desi Cuevas smashed back-to-back homeruns in the sixth inning to put the Vikings firmly ahead. Cain, Cooper and Stella Harber all knocked out doubles and Cain led with four RBI as the team combined for three walks drawn. Grace Glanzer earned the win in the circle in 5.0 innings of work, improving to 22-6 on the year. She tallied three strikeouts with seven fly outs and four ground outs against 18 batters faced while allowing just one run. Lexi Lander collected her first save of the season after striking out four of 10 batters faced and allowing one unearned run 2.0 innings pitched. Augustana struck first in the bottom of the first inning, scoring one run after a drawn walk from Cain, a sacrifice bunt from Cuevas and a single from Lander to open up action. MSU Moorhead was downed in order in both the second and third innings and the AU advantage held until the Dragons soon tied up the game 1-1 in the top of the fourth. But that score wouldn't last long. In the bottom of the fifth, Liz Dierks singled to third and advanced on a throwing error to reach scoring position. The ensuing at-bat resulted in a rocketed double from Cain to left field off her first pitch and would score Dierks. Now ahead 2-1, the lead was one that Augustana would not rescind for the remainder of the game. Cooper doubled to kick off the sixth inning and Harber followed that up with a walk to put two on. After a fly out advanced the runner to third, Sidney Smart singled through the right side to score one and advanced another to second base. Facing a two-out situation with two on, Cain slammed a shot over the center field fence, smacking the scoreboard as she hammered in a three-run homerun. The dagger forced a pitching change for the Dragons but that didn't stop Cuevas. On the very next pitch of the game, Cuevas slammed a solo homer to left center in her very first pitch of the at-bat. The electric performance at the plate from the Vikings resulted in a five-run inning and a 7-1 lead for the top seed. The Dragons singled and drew a walk to start the top of the seventh before heavy rain in the area forced a weather delay. When play resumed, MSUM was able to score one run to close in. Lander then collected three strikeouts off swinging batters to end the game and secure the 7-2 win. UP NEXTAugustana will return to the field on Friday afternoon to take on the fifth-seeded Minnesota Duluth Bulldogs at 12 p.m. on Bowden Field. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
