Pipers, Cardinals split pair of one-run thrillers

In the first game, Saint Mary’s struck first, scoring a run in the top of the fourth. Hamline evened the score in the bottom of the fifth, but the difference in the game wound up being two runs that weren’t scored. Cardinal centerfielder Danielle Geske (Jr., Rosemount, Minn.) fell through the outfield wall to snag a potential two-out, two-run homerun shot by Sara Mickelson (Sr., West St. Paul, Minn.) to end the Piper fifth.

The Cardinals took that momentum into the sixth, when Geske hit a two-run homer with Mallory Betzold (Fy., Farmington, Minn.) on base to put Saint Mary’s up 3-1.

The Pipers responded with a run in the seventh, but couldn’t tie the game to send it into extra innings. Sarah Fitzgerald (Sr., Colo, Iowa) earned the win for Saint Mary’s.

In game two, Saint Mary’s struck quickly, scoring in the first inning. Hamline’s Sophie Davidson (So., St. Paul, Minn.) then responded offensively for the Pipers, hitting a two-run homer of her own  third inning with Heidi Larsen (Fy., Andover, Minn.) on base to take the 2-1 lead.

The Pipers added an additional run in the fourth and again in the sixth inning, before Cardinal Katy Gannon (Fy., Roselle, Ill.) hit a two-run shot in the seventh to cut the Piper lead to one run.  After the homerun, Jessalyn Weaver (So., Eagan, Minn.) entered the game and picked up the save in relief of starter Kelsey Tacheny (Fy., St. Paul, Minn.), who earned the win on the mound.

With the split, the Pipers’ record remains even at 9-9, 3-3 MIAC, while the Cardinals are now 8-14, 6-2 MIAC. Hamline will host Gustavus on Thursday, April 16, at 4:00 p.m. in an MIAC match-up.

Hamline University belongs to the NCAA Division III Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, one of the most competitive conferences in the nation. Hamline supports 19 intercollegiate athletic teams for men and women. Find out more about Hamline athletics at www.hamline.edu/hamline_info/athletics.

Creative and innovative teaching and learning attract a diverse student body of nearly 4,600 undergraduate and graduate students to Hamline University. Challenged to create and apply knowledge in local and global contexts, Hamline students develop an individual and community ethic of social justice, civic responsibility, and inclusive leadership and service.

Ranked first in Minnesota among comprehensive master’s universities by U.S.News & World Report, Hamline is also Minnesota’s first university, founded in 1854, and among the first co-educational institutions in the nation.