Upper Iowa welcomed the St. Cloud State University Huskies, who were ranked No. 8 in the first NCAA Division II Softball Regional Rankings, to Eischeid Softball Complex on Friday afternoon for the Peacocks' fourth NSIC doubleheader at home in the last week. The Peacocks managed to split the twin bill with a 9-4 win in game two after dropping the opener 6-2. Upper Iowa now sits at 21-16 overall and 13-9 in the conference while St. Cloud State is 34-12 overall and 16-6 against conference opponents.
Ali Green went 4-for-5 with a pair of RBI, Katie Crogan had three hits and three RBI, and Erin Drahozal drove in three runs with two hits to lead the Peacocks in the effort.
UIU returns back to the field Saturday at noon for another tough NSIC matchup against the University of Minnesota Duluth, who ranked No. 7 in the Central Region Poll. The Bulldogs sit one spot ahead of the Peacocks in the NSIC standings and were swept by the No. 7 Winona State University Warriors in their Friday matchup.
Game One: St. Cloud State 6, Upper Iowa 2
The Peacocks scored both of their runs in the third inning thanks to three hits and a Husky error. Kennedy Newell led the inning off with a single to left field and advanced to scoring position on Jenny Budd's bunt single. Kaylee Frenette knocked Newell in on the next play with a shot to shortstop that was bobbled, allowing Budds to reach second on the error. The left fielder later scored on Jordyn Brennan's single up the middle to give the Peacocks a 2-0 advantage.
After a pair of scoreless innings, St. Cloud State went into rally mode. The Huskies scored their first run on a sacrifice fly in the fifth and tied the game at 2-2 in the sixth with a rbi-single. SCSU then scored the go-ahead run and more in the top of the 7th to make the score 6-2 in favor of the visitors. The Peacocks had some work to do going into the home half of the inning, but came up short as a foul fly ball and double play ended the game.
Drahozal (3-1) received the loss in relief after allowing four runs, two earned, on two hits in the top of the seventh. Emily Kisch got the start in the circle and lasted 6.0 innings, giving up two runs on six hits with four strikeouts.
Sydney Lapoint entered the circle midway through the sixth inning and went on to earn her ninth win of the season by only allowing one hit to the home team. Kate Kopeck got the start for the Huskies and allowed two runs, one earned, on six hits in 5.1 innings.
Game Two: Upper Iowa 9, St. Cloud State 4
The Peacocks dusted off the opening loss quickly in game two by scoring four runs with no outs in the bottom of the first. A throwing error by the Huskies gave UIU the first run of the game before Crogan hit a three-run homer to score Sami Kay Shafranski and Brennan who reached on a single and fielder's choice, respectively.
The Huskies were able to cut the Peacock lead in half by the end of the third inning fueled by a trio of extra-base hits. Raven Vanden Langenberg used a triple to right field to plate Brooke Bowlin who doubled at her at bat, and Alexandra Pinkowski added a run on a passed ball in the third inning with no outs after reaching with a triple of her own.
The Peacocks shut the door on SCSU's momentum soon after with the first triple play in Upper Iowa's 13-year history in NCAA Division II. With runners on first and second, Katie Crogan gloved a hard line drive in front of first base, beat the runner back to the bag and made the throw to Julia Buffington at second to end the inning in dramatic fashion.
The Peacocks stretched their lead to six, 8-2, over the next few innings thanks to a two-rbi double from Ali Green in the third and a two-run bomb to left center off the bat of Erin Drahozal.
SCSU tried clawing its way back into the game with a pair of runs scored on wild pitches in the top of the fifth, but UIU was able to outlast the Huskies with solid defense and one final insurance tally to make the final score 9-4.
Jaclyn Thompson (4-5) received the win after tossing 6.0 innings, allowing four runs on four hits while striking out four batters and walking six. Kisch gave up two hits in her inning of relief but coaxed the three outs the Peacocks needed to secure the sweep.
The Huskies turned to four pitchers in the nightcap with Lapoint taking the loss after allowing four runs on two hits without an out in the first inning. Lauren Kirchberg, Bradi Yost and Emma Murphy all threw in relief.
