SUPERIOR, Wis. – The Bethany Lutheran softball team claimed a 4-3 victory over UW-Superior in game one Saturday afternoon, earning a share of the UMAC regular season championship and the right to host the upcoming conference tournament. The Vikings dropped game two 13-0, moving to 25-13 overall and 15-3 in UMAC play, while the Yellowjackets sit at 30-10 overall and 15-3 in the conference.

Hear from the Vikings
Here's what head coach Angela Dabu and senior second baseman Kaija Mork had to say about the day.

Dabu: "Proud of this team and how they continue to improve every day! We are excited about the regular season championship and are ready to get back to work to prepare for the postseason."

Mork: "Today was a hard fought battle like we knew it would be, proud of how we came together and fought. We are excited and ready for this next week at home!"

Inside the Box Scores

Game 1: Bethany 4, UW-Superior 3

It was a slow start for the Vikings, who were retired in order in both the first and second innings. The Yellowjackets, on the other hand, couldn't have asked for a better start, leading off the bottom of the first with a solo home run to take an early 1-0 lead.

UW-Superior threatened again in the second, getting a leadoff baserunner, but a strong play from Emily Meyer in the circle and a pair of infield popouts ended the frame.

Bethany mounted its first threat in the top of the third, starting with a Carly Nelson single. A few batters later, Emily Nelson doubled, putting runners in scoring position. An infield single loaded the bases with one out, but a 1-2-3 double play ended the inning as the Yellowjackets escaped the jam.

Superior added another run in the bottom of the third when leadoff hitter Peyton Bennett hit her second home run in as many at-bats, extending the lead to 2-0 heading into the fourth.

The Vikings finally got on the board in the fourth. With two outs, Aliya Edbom-Kehler sparked a rally, and Meyer helped her own cause with an RBI double to left center to cut the lead to 2-1.

After a scoreless bottom half from Meyer, Bethany tied the game in the fifth. A Yellowjacket error put a runner on second, and Avery Carlson delivered a clutch two-out RBI double to make it 2-2.

In the bottom of the fifth, UW-Superior briefly reclaimed the lead, using a walk, a sacrifice bunt, and a single to go ahead 3-2.

Bethany responded in the sixth. Kaija Mork led off with a single, and Edbom-Kehler followed with a double to move her to third. After the ball was returned to the infield, an errant throw allowed both runners to take an extra base, tying the game. Just a few pitches later, Meyer lined a single up the middle to score another and give Bethany a 4-3 lead.

Meyer cruised through a three-pitch sixth inning and worked around a bunt single in the seventh to secure the win.

Edbom-Kehler and Meyer led Bethany at the plate with two hits each, while Meyer earned the complete-game victory, striking out six.

Game 1: UW-Superior 13, Bethany 0 (5 innings)

With playoff seeding already determined, game two saw the Yellowjackets playing for a share of the UMAC title. After a scoreless first inning, they started to pull away in the second.

Similar to the first inning, Bethany got a runner to third in the second but couldn't capitalize. UW-Superior opened the scoring in the bottom half with an RBI single, followed by a three-run homer a few batters later to make it 4-0.

After a 1-2-3 top of the third from Bethany, the Yellowjackets blew the game open in the bottom half, scoring five more runs on five hits and a Bethany error to push the lead to 9-0.

They added four more in the fourth and held Bethany scoreless in the fourth and fifth to claim the 13-0 win.

Bethany managed just one hit in game two—a leadoff single from Bryn Weidner—while Mork took the loss in the circle, allowing six runs over three innings.

The Vikings will now serve as hosts for the upcoming UMAC Tournament next weekend, kicking things off with an opening round matchup again Minnesota Morris on Thursday, May 8th at 4:30 p.m.