MENOMONIE, Wis. – Things have been going well for the Yellowjacket softball team.
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After a weekend sweep of Crown College pushed the Yellowjacket win streak to nine games, UW-Superior was back on the road Tuesday, taking on UW-Stout in a non-conference doubleheader.
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In the opener the Yellowjackets rode big innings to an 11-4 win, moving their winning streak to 10n games. The streak ended in the second game, however, as Stout took an early lead and never gave it up, defeating the Yellowjackets 8-0 in six innings.
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After Tuesday's action, the Yellowjackets stand at 19-5 overall to go along with a 6-0 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) mark.
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The Yellowjackets pounded out 16 hits in the opener, led by
Peyton Bennett (Harrisburg, S.D./Harrisburg) who continued her outstanding freshman season, going 4-for-5 while driving in a run and scoring twice.
Carly Stuckmayer (Delano, Minn./Delano) also posted another big game, going 3-for-3 with two runs batted in and a run scored.
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They were limited to just five hits in the second game, while UW-Stout rode a pair of big innings to split the doubleheader.
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Game One Notes
- The Yellowjackets scored four times in the top of the first and twice in the second to open up an early 6-0 lead.
- In the first the Yellowjackets did all their damage with two outs. Ellie Macal (Winona, Minn./Cotter) started the scoring with a single up the middle, scoring Lily Hanson (Cloquet, Minn./Esko). MyKenzie Leccia (Somerset, Wis./Somerset) added an RBI single before Stuckmayer brought in two runners with a single to left.
- Hanson and Macal extended the lead with RBI singles in the second.
- UW-Stout scored single runs in the second and third innings before the Yellowjackets got one back in the fourth.
- Stout closed the gap to three, 7-4 in the bottom of the fourth, but the Yellowjackets responded in the top of the seventh with four more runs. Samantha Swartz (Antigo, Wis./Antigo) singled home two runs with a single through the left side. Bennett then followed with an infield single, scoring the 10th run of the game. The final run came across on a wild pitch.
- Six different Yellowjackets had multi-hit games.
- It was pitching by committee for the Yellowjackets. Garley started in the circle and pitched 2.1 innings, allowing two runs on three hits with a way. Samantha Swartz (Antigo, Wis./Antigo) came on in relief and pitched 2.1 innings, allowing two runs on five hits to earn the win and improve to 9-0 on the year. Abby Mitchell (Cloquet, Minn./Carlton) threw the final 2.1 innings, allowing just one hit and striking out two.
Game Two Notes
- Stout scored three runs in the bottom of the second inning and added five more in the sixth.
- The Yellowjackets managed five hits in the second game, getting one apiece from Hanson, Macal, Leccia, Karen Balabon (Elk River, Minn./Elk River) and Mackenzie Bird (Menomonie, Wis./Menomonie).
- Mitchell started in the circle and took the loss after allowing three runs on four hits over 1.2 innings. Her record for the year drops to 1-1.
- Georgia Youngblood (Ray, Mich./Lutheran North) had a strong outing in relief, scattering four hits over 1.2 scoreless innings and posting three strikeouts.
- Garley, Swartz and Emma Pillion (Ottawa, Ill./Ottawa Township) also pitched in the second game.
The Yellowjackets will finally be home Friday when they open a three-game weekend series against UMAC foe North Central. The first pitch is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. at the NBC Spartan Sports Complex.
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