(ST. NORBERT COMMUNICATIONS) DE PERE – St. Norbert College rallied to two comeback wins over Wisconsin Lutheran College, winning in dramatic fashion in a Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference doubleheader at Miron Construction Field, defeating the Warriors 7-6 and 12-10.
The Green Knights (4-12, 3-1 NACC) came back from a 6-2 deficit in the opening game of the afternoon with five runs in the seventh to take the first home game of the season. In the nightcap, the St. Norbert trailed 8-0 after two innings but slowly found their way back into the game and with five runs in the sixth inning, took a 12-9 lead and held on in the final inning despite runners in scoring position.
After trailing 4-1 after two innings in the first game of the afternoon, St. Norbert scored two runs in the fourth to chip into the Wisconsin Lutheran lead from a Grendel Sprong (pictured) triple that scored Magdeline Hanmann and Addison Race to make it 4-2.
The Warriors scored two more runs to make it 6-2 going into the bottom of the seventh. The Green Knights then exploded on offense, with a Zoe Zasada hitting a 3 RBI double to tie the game at 6-6. A walk-off single by Race then scored Zasada for the winning run of the game.
Allison Ardito and Sprong each recorded two hits, with Sprong ending the game with two RBIs.
Amber Johanek earned her first win of the season, pitching three innings and allowing five hits and two runs.
The situation was dire for the Green Knights at the start of the second game, trailing by eight runs after two innings. Despite this, St. Norbert went on to score seven unanswered runs to come within one run of a tie game.
Morgan Hansel started the rally with a home run that also scored Sprong in the second inning, while the former was hit by pitch in the third to score Ava Engwall with the bases loaded.
An Engwall single scored Ardito in the fourth to make it 8-4, while a 2 RBI double from Andrianna Volz in the fifth made it 8-6. Ardito brought in a run of her own off her single later in the inning, scoring Volz to make it 8-7.
A home run from the Warriors looked like to have put a dent in the comeback attempt, but with five runs in the sixth, St. Norbert was able to recover from the early obstacles they faced.
Pinch runner Sophia Nieckula scored the tying run on a wild pitch, while a sacrifice fly from Hallei Mleziva scored Hanmann to make it 10-9 in favor of the Green Knights.
The Green Knights took advantage off a wild pitch and an error by the Warriors to end the inning with a 12-9 lead, and despite the Warriors making it a nervous atmosphere at the ballpark in the final inning, St. Norbert got itself out of the jam to take its first sweep of the season.
Engwall led with four hits, while Ardito had three. Sprong, Race and Hanmann each had two.
Cassie Schultz earned the win, pitching 4 2/3 innings and allowing five hits and two runs with one walk. Amelia Olson earned her first save of the season with one inning pitched and one strikeout.
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