WINONA, Minn. – The Bethel University softball team dropped a pair of conference matches at No. 22-ranked and MIAC-leading Saint Mary's Saturday afternoon. The Royals dropped game one 11-1 in five innings before falling 6-5 in game two as the Cardinals plated four in the bottom of the seventh.
Bethel falls to 10-13 on the year and 4-4 in MIAC play.
Game 1: #22 Saint Mary's 11, Bethel 1 (5 innings)
Autumn Earney put the Royals on the board right from the start, tallying her fifth long ball of the year.
The Cardinals responded with a three-spot in the bottom half and never looked back. Saint Mary's tacked on another three in the second, two of which were unearned, before putting up a five-spot in the third.
Bethel had a pair of hits in the third and fourth and got a runner to third in both frames, but couldn't push a run across.
In the circle,
Dominique Walicke suffered her first loss in the last seven starts.
Game 2: #22 Saint Mary's 6, Bethel 5
A solo home run by
Sidney Bartels in the top of the seventh expanded the Royals lead to 5-2 and put them three outs away from hoping to end the Cardinals' 14-game winning streak.
Saint Mary's drew back-to-back walks before a three-run homer to center tied it up at 5-5. In the circle, starter
Abby Otterness had already worked out of a few jams but a sharp liner right back at her that went down as a single forced BU to go to reliver
Brianna Tix.
A steal of single and a sacrifice bunt put the winning run at third where the Cardinals took game two with a successful safety squeeze play.
Bethel came out swinging putting up four runs in its first at bat. Bartels drove in the first two runs with a single to left before an RBI ground out from
Kayley Frenette and RBI double from
Julia Helget capped out the scoring.
It wasn't until the third that Saint Mary's got on the board with a solo homer in just their second hit of the game. The Cardinals got one back in the fifth to pull within two.
UP NEXT
The Royals look to bounce back and snap a three-game losing skid when they host Gustavus Adolphus on Sunday afternoon at Ona Orth Athletic Complex. Game one of the double header is set for 1 p.m.
