ST. BONIFACIOUS, Minn. – For the first time since 2019 and second time in program history, the Bethany Lutheran softball team is Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Regular Season Champions. The Vikings captured a pair of wins over Crown on Tuesday night to improve to 19-0 in conference play and earned themselves the outright regular season title as well as the No. 1 seed and right to host the UMAC Tournament.
Bethany Lutheran 11 – 4 Crown
Bethany kicked off the scoring in the top of the first, as Katelyn Halbach and Kaija Mork each singled, with both runners advancing an extra base on the throw of Mork's single to put two in scoring position. Emily Doyle then grounded out to score Halbach and plate the game's first run. With two away, Haley Stockman then ripped a triple to score Mork before Aliya Kehler knocked the first of her four hits to bring home Stockman and push the visitors to a 3-0 lead in the first.
Kayla Senne would toss a scoreless bottom of the first before Brynja Mielke and Bailey Erlandson would each single to kick off the second. After a fielder's choice and strikeout got two quick outs, a hit batter followed by a wild pitch would allow a run to score and give Bethany a 4-0 lead.
Following another quick frame from Senne, the Polars would make an error in the outfield to kick off the third that would allow Stockman to reach second base. Kehler would follow that at-bat up with a base hit to plate another run and extend the lead to 5-0.
Both teams would then go scoreless in their next plate appearance before Crown stepped up to bat in the bottom of the fourth. They would get a pair of singles and used a Bethany error to plate their first run, but Senne would limit the damage with a pair of strikeouts. The Polars would get another run in the fifth following a leadoff triple and passed ball that would cut Bethany's lead to 5-2 heading to the seventh.
Kehler would kick things off again with a one out single, before Elizabeth Cizek reached on an error that allowed Kehler to get to third. Mielke then recorded an RBI groundout, before Bailey Erlandson doubled to score Cizek. After Halbach singled to put two runners on, Mork and Doyle would each get run scoring singles before Ana Christofferson knocked both aforementioned players in with a double to give the Vikings an 11-2 leading heading into the final half inning.
Crown would get a pair of two out RBI's in the final frame but it wasn't enough as Bethany held on 11-4.
Kehler led the Vikings 18-hit attack at the plate going 4-for-4 with two RBI, while Halbach had three hits and two runs scored.
Senne got the win on the mound going six innings and allowing two earned runs while striking out 11.
Bethany Lutheran 7 – 4 Crown
With the game one giving the Vikings at least a share of the title, they came out firing in game two to attempt to claim it outright.
Halbach singled to open things up and stole second base before Mork ripped a double to bring her home. Doyle would follow Mork up with a single to plate the games second run but the Polars would work around the threat and hold the Vikings scoreless the remainder of the frame.
Senne would work a scoreless first inning but after a quick top of the second from Bethany, the Polars would use a Viking error in the bottom half to plate their first run and the cut the lead to 2-1 after two innings.
After the third inning played scoreless, Jade Krenik opened the fourth with a base hit before being bunted over by Mielke. With a runner on second, Cizek laid a perfect bunt down the third base line with the throw from the third baseman sailing past the first basemen and all the way into the right field corner with Cizek circling the bases in the process to bring two runs across and put Bethany up 4-1. After a Viking groundout, Mork would walk before a Doyle double to the right center field gap gave Bethany a 5-1 cushion after four innings.
The Vikings continued to add onto their lead in the fifth, as Stockman singled and stole second before eventually being driven in on a Krenik single. Two wild pitches would allow Krenik to advance to third before an error on the Polar defense allowed her to score and give Bethany a 7-1 advantage.
After a single and double plated Crown a run in the fifth, they would start the sixth off the same way to bring another across. With a runner still on second and trailing by four, the Polars would use a wild pitch and some timely baserunning to plate another and cut the deficit to 7-4 heading to the final inning.
Following a quick top of the seventh from the Viking offense, Senne would retire the first batter in the bottom half with a fly out. A single and walk with one out would bring the tying run to the plate, but Senne would strike out the final two batters to claim the win and conference title.
Bethany had nine hits in the second contest with Halbach, Doyle, Stockman, and Krenik tallying two each. Mork recorded the other hit for the Vikings with while also scoring two runs. Senne got the win on the mound, striking out 14 batters while allowing three earned runs.
