Softball 4/7/02 -- Augsburg 5-3, Hamline 2-9

GAME 1 BOXSCORE
GAME 2 BOXSCORE

MINNEAPOLIS (4/7/02) -- Augsburg College's Rachael Ekholm (Sr., Richfield, Minn.) hit a game-winning grand-slam home run to clinch the victory in the first game, and Hamline University pounded out 12 hits and built a big lead in the second game, en route to a split of a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference softball doubleheader on Sunday afternoon at Augsburg's Edor Nelson Field. Augsburg won the first game 5-2, and Hamline won the second game 9-3.

Augsburg moves to 5-9-1 overall and 1-3 in the MIAC with the split, while Hamline moved to 10-2 overall and 1-1 in MIAC play. The games were moved to Augsburg's Edor Nelson Field indoor air structure after being postponed on Saturday.

Trailing 2-1 entering the seventh inning, Augsburg took advantage of three errors to load the bases against Hamline starting pitcher Niki Seal (Fr., Bloomington, Minn.). She was relieved for Chris Hodroff (Fr., Plymouth, Minn.), and on Hodroff's first pitch, Ekholm unloaded and sent the ball flying over the left-center fence.

It was Ekholm's second career grand slam and school-record 11th homer of her career; it was her fourth home run of the season, tying her previous single-season school homer record, set in 2000.

In addition to slugging the game-winning hit, Ekholm also picked up the win on the pitching rubber, striking out six in a complete-game performance. Combined with her four strikeouts in the second game, Ekholm now has a school-record 297 career strikeouts. She now has 49 strikeouts this season; her single-season record of 106 was set last year (she is currently on pace to collect 114 strikeouts this season).

Augsburg opened the first game with a single run in the first inning, when Kristen Lideen (So., Champlin, Minn./Champlin Park HS) singled and eventually scored on a wild pitch. Lideen had two of Augsburg's three hits in the game, as Hamline's Seal was effective against Auggie bats, recording 12 strikeouts and six walks, forcing Augsburg to strand six runners in the contest.

Hamline took a 2-1 lead in the sixth, when pinch-hitter Joan Sheedy (Fr., Austin, Minn.) tripled down the left-field line, and her pinch-runner, Jamie Fenner (Fr., ashington, Wis.) scored on a double by Amanda Gage (Fr., Forest Lake, Minn.). Venda Porter (Sr., Townsend, Wash.) singled home Gage to give the Pipers their only lead of the second game.

Hamline dominated the second game, breaking a scoreless tie with nine runs in the final four innings. Six of Hamline's hits were extra-base hits, including two doubles from Marion Zillhardt (So., Andover, Minn.), who went 2-for-2. Emily Deuth (Jr., Northfield, Minn.) went 3-for-4, scoring twice and driving in two runs with a triple, while Lindsay Miller (So., Wyoming, Minn.) went 3-for-4 with a double, run scored and a run batted in. Gage went 2-for-4 with a double and RBI.

The Pipers opened the scoring with a two-out, two-run single from Julia Rossini (So., White Bear Lake, Minn.) in the fourth inning, and two more runs were scored in the fifth, when Deuth scored on a fielding error and Miller drove in Porter on a single.

Hamline plated four more runs in the sixth, when Deuth hit an RBI triple, and Gage, Porter and Zillhardt each hit run-scoring doubles.

Augsburg staved off an early end to the game, via the eight-run rule, in the bottom of the sixth, when Jennie LaManna (Sr., South St. Paul, Minn.) hit a run-scoring single, driving home Trisha Pederson (Fr., Proctor, Minn.) and Melissa Lee (So., Cannon Falls, Minn./Randolph HS) hit a two-run triple to bring home LaManna and Ekholm.

Hamline added its final run in the seventh, when Megan Amunrud (Fr., St. Paul, Minn.) walked, advanced to third on a two-base error, and scored came home on a sacrifice fly by Deuth.

Beth Bisciglia (So., Mendota Heights, Minn.) picked up the pitching win for Hamline, striking out five in six innings of work. Hodroff picked up the save, pitching an inning in relief.

Ekholm was tagged with the loss, striking out four while walking wtwo in 4.1 innings of work. Becky Peters (So., Portage, Wis.) and Mindy Evers (Sr., Comfrey, Minn.) pitched in relief.

Both teams return to MIAC action on Tuesday (4/9), with Augsburg hosting Concordia-Moorhead at 2 p.m. at Edor Nelson Field (the game has been moved up from its original time), and Hamline hosting Macalester at 4 p.m.