DULUTH, Minn. – The Bethany softball team started the day in another elimination game, this time against #4 Crown. The Vikings avoided being eliminated from the Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) tournament last night with a 6-5 10 inning win over #2 UW-Superior. Today, the Vikings defeated Crown by a score of 7-3 before losing to #1 St. Scholastica 2-0 to end the season.
Against Crown, the Vikings fell behind 3-1 after one inning of play. In the fourth, Eden Ambrose doubled down the right field line and scored after Morgan Mashlan doubled. Mashlan maneuvered her way to third and was driven in with an RBI from Kendra Porath which tied the game at three. The Vikings took the lead in the fifth inning with a run from Sarah Presler and then added three more runs in the top of the seventh for good measure. After falling behind early, the Vikings scored six unanswered runs to win the game 7-3.
Kaylee Mork and Sarah Presler each had two hits for the Vikings. Mork finished 2-4 with one run and Presler was 2-2 with two runs and one RBI. Ambrose, Mashlan, Taylor Kottke, and Porath each had one RBI for the Vikings. The Vikings, who set the single season school record for stolen bases yesterday, added four more steals to their total today. The Vikings stole a total of 62 bases on the year despite playing eight less games.
Anna Pipenhagen pitched another complete game for the Vikings, going seven innings with three strikeouts, eight hits, and three runs.
The Vikings battled again in their third elimination game against the host team St. Scholastica Saints, but came up short 2-0. Scholastica pitcher Vanessa Kohl was tough for the Saints, pitching the complete game shutout and only giving up three hits. Anna Pipenhagen, Eden Ambrose, and Julia Pfeiffer each recorded one hit for the Vikings. Taylor Kottke reached base twice on walks and stole one base. The Vikings left a total of seven runners on base.
Anna Pipenhagen finishes her career with the Vikings as the best pitcher in school history, holding nearly every career pitching record. Pipenhagen was all heart during the tournament, pitching a total of 29 innings over two days. Against the Saints, Pipenhagen struck out seven and gave up two runs and five hits.
The Vikings end the season with an overall record of 17-19 while going 10-6 in UMAC play. The Vikings surpassed their win total from last year despite playing eight less regular season games. The Vikings also improved their UMAC win total by two games compared to last season. Under second year head coach Dan Nessler, the Vikings have qualified for the UMAC postseason tournament both years. The Vikings finish the postseason tournament this year with a record of 2-2.
The Vikings will say goodbye to three seniors in Anna Pipenhagen, Rachel Kurtenbach, and Amber Schulz.
