UW-L Opens WIAC Season with Split at UW-Stevens Point

For Immediate Release: Thursday, April 3, 2008

Stevens Point, Wis. – The UW-La Crosse softball team opened its WIAC season with a doubleheader split at UW-Stevens Point Thursday afternoon at McCarty Field. The Pointers, ranked 20th in NCAA Division III, won the opener, 4-3 in eight innings, before the Eagles came back to win the nightcap, 8-1.

UW-L is now 13-4 overall while UW-Stevens Point is 13-3.

In the opener, the Pointers took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first as Samantha Bizeau had a two-run single. The Eagles tied the contest in the top of the second with two unearned runs. UW-Stevens Point took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the second with Laura Van Abel having an RBI triple. UW-L tied it on the top of the seventh on Liz Bradley's two-out home run. Mallory Martens then had the game-winning single in the bottom of the eighth with two outs for UW-Stevens Point, scoring Melissa Wenig.

Kayla Kastenmeier (8-1) earned the win, pitching 8.0 innings, allowing five hits, three runs (one earned) and two walks while striking out five. Cassie Huettl (0-2) took the loss for UW-L, going 3.1 innings, allowing one hit, one run (earned) and two walks with one strikeout. Heather Schultz started for the Eagles, pitching 4.1 innings, allowing five hits, three runs (all earned) and four walks while striking out five.

Emily Eggers was 2-for-2 for the Eagles while Cara Salm finished 2-for-4 with a run scored.

In the nightcap, the Eagles tallied twice in the top of the first on Bradley had an RBI double and Jenna Ahnen a run-scoring single. UW-L added three more runs in the third to lead 5-0. Salm had an RBI single. Ahnen added a two-run single in the fourth to make it 7-0 and Salm had an RBI double in the seventh for an 8-0 UW-L lead. The Pointers scored their run in the bottom of the seventh.

Jess Iwanski (2-0) picked up the victory, going 7.0 innings, allowing seven hits, one run (earned) and two walks with seven strikeouts.

Ahnen finished 3-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBI while Rachel Croak was 3-for-4 with two runs. Salm was 2-for-4 with two RBI while Bradley scored three times.

UW-L returns to action Friday, April 4 hosting UW-Platteville in its home opener at 3 p.m.