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Saturday MSU Box Score

Saturday UMC Box Score

Sunday MSU Box Score

Sunday UMC Box Score

SAINT CLOUD, Minn. (Mar. 9, 2015)-- The University of Wisconsin-Parkside softball squad split its four game series inside the Husky Dome over the weekend, sweeping a pair of games from the University of Minnesota-Crookston while dropping a pair of nail biters to Minot State University. Freshman Courtney Ellingson dominated the competition over the two days, hitting .667 at the plate with five RBIs while claiming a win and a save inside the circle.
 
The Rangers (4-9) opened the weekend on Saturday night, falling 1-0 in extra innings to Minot State (10-2) before rebounding with a 6-5 victory over Minnesota-Crookston (0-8) in the nightcap. UW-Parkside returned to the diamond on Sunday morning, succumbing to Minot 5-3 before blasting UM-Crookston 9-0 in the matinee.
 
In Saturday's opener, neither squad was able to manufacture a run in the opening seven innings, forcing extras. Minot State's Melissa Bell led off the eighth with a bunt single before stealing second. Rachel Burdette plated Bell with two outs on a double to right field for the game's lone run.
 
Courtney Ellingson was saddled with the loss despite striking out five and allowing just one run in eight innings of work. Ellingson additionally led the Ranger offense, finishing two-for-three at the plate.
 
Mindy Lorimer tallied the win for the Beavers, tossing a complete game shutout after striking out nine and allowing just three hits.
 
In the nightcap, UW-Parkside struck first, plating a run in the opening inning after Kalli Gosser stole home. Gosser led off the inning by reached base on an error and advanced to third on a wild pitch.
 
The Golden Eagles answered in the third inning with Alexis Khoshaba blasting a three-run home run. Ellingson belted a solo home run in the third inning, closing the gap to one run while Madison Manders led off the fourth inning with a solo blast to tie the ballgame. UM-Crookston pushed back ahead in the fifth inning, scoring a run on a bases loaded hit batter but the Rangers responded with two more runs in the bottom of the fifth.
 
Ellingson tripled to left field, scoring Gosser before a Megan Holderby single plated Ellingson. UMC tied the game with a run in the top of the sixth before a Morgan Dastych sacrifice fly in the sixth inning scored Therese Jender to provide the winning run for Parkside.
 
Ellingson again paced the Rangers at the plate, going two-for-two with a pair of RBIs.
 
Carly Dundee netted the win, tossing 3 1/3 innings of relief and allowing just one earned run while Ellingson tallied the save, allowing no runs in one inning of work. UMC's Brooke Vatthauer absorbed the defeat, allowing six runs and issuing four walks in six innings of action.
 
In Sunday's opening game, Minot State grabbed an early 2-0 lead, tallying a pair of unearned runs in the first inning. A Therese Jender infield single got the Rangers on the board in the fourth inning, plating Madison Manders after she reached base on a two-out single.
 
UW-Parkside seized the lead in the fifth frame after Ellingson belted a two-run home run over the center field fence, knocking in Paige Harbord who reached base on a bunt single. The Rangers' lead proved fleeting with the Beavers scoring a pair of runs in the fifth and tacking on an insurance score in the sixth for the 5-3 win.
 
Hardbord and Manders each collected a pair of hits to power the Ranger offense while Ellingson drove in two of the squad's three runs.
 
In the circle, Carly Dundee suffered the loss, yielding two earned runs in six innings of action while Lorimer again tallied the win for MSU, fanning four in the complete game effort.
 
The Sunday's matinee game, UW-Parkside piled on four runs in the first inning in the mercy-rule shortened blowout. Jordan Nichols opened the scoring with an outfield single, scoring Ellingson while Manders had a two-RBI single to center field. A Golden Eagle fielding miscue pushed across an unearned run with two outs, pushing the Parkside lead to 4-0.
 
Samantha Magruder doubled to left field in the third inning, bringing in Holderby and Ellingson to up the Ranger edge to 6-0. Ellingson drove in a run in the fourth while Dastych and Holderby each belted in runs in the sixth to extend the Parkside lead to 9-0.
 
The Green and White generated 11 hits in the game with Ellingson going a perfect three-for-three at the dish while tossing a complete game shutout. The freshman southpaw fanned eight batters while allowing just one hit and one walk to close the weekend.
 
The Rangers return to action on Saturday, traveling to Kirksville, Missouri, to open up Great Lakes Valley Conference play with a doubleheader against Truman State University.