Mankato, Minn. — Bethany softball clobbered Northland in a single game this afternoon. The Vikings went away with the upper hand, bringing their conference standing to 10-7 to remain fourth in the standings.

Emily Rauchman (Mankato, Minn./Mankato West) pitched, tipping her personal stats to 3-2. The first two innings moved fairly quickly with no runs and one hit from third baseman Amanda Edmison (Mayer, Minn./Watertown-Mayer). Things turned around in the third, when Northland earned two runs, their only runs for the game.

Viking defense stayed sharp for the remainder of the game, even with two walked batters. The fourth inning saw the most action with eight runs for the Vikings. Rauchman homered, bringing in three players. Gena Chester (Mankato, Minn./Mankato West) and Edmison both doubled for two RBI. In the fifth and final inning, freshman Kathryn Nieman (Clear Lake, Iowa/Clear Lake) also homered for two RBI to allow for the eight run mercy rule.

Next up, Friday, Bethany faces Northwestern at 2 p.m. and Crown at 4 p.m., both at Caswell as the Vikings host the UMAC Crossover.