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Softball dominates pair of midweek twinbills over Mankato, SDSU
Season's second and final home series yields two shutouts and momentum into SDSU matchup
 Media Credit: Michael Martin/Managing Editor SCSU�s Angie Berg misses the tag on Minnesota State, Mankato� s Val Hyde Tuesday during the Huskies sweep at Selke Field. The Huskies play in the MSU, Mankato, Invite this weekend.
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 Media Credit: Michael Martin/Managing Editor SCSU pitcher Nicole Webb fires a pitch during the Huskies� Tuesday sweep of MSU, Mankato. The Huskies didn�t allow a single run as they beat Mankato 5-0 and 13-0.
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The 20th ranked SCSU softball team is on their home stretch to the postseason.
With little over a week left in the regular season the Huskies are getting their team primed and ready for the crucial end of the season North Central Conference tournament, a tournament in which the team is very confident they can win.
First, however, are some games that these Huskies have to take care of, teams that they aren't taking too lightly.
"We need to focus on beating every single team and not just the big teams," said sophomore pitcher Nicole Webb, "and playing every team as hard as we possibly can." The teams the Huskies played this week were the Minnesota State University, Mankato, Mavericks on Tuesday, and the South Dakota State Jackrabbits Wednesday.
On Tuesday the Huskies took on the Mavericks in a home doubleheader at Selke Field. It was a fine afternoon for softball, especially for the Huskies, as they took both games from Mankato to the tune of 5-0 in the first game and 12-0 in the second match-up.
Nicole Webb received the win for the Huskies in the first game as she had another impressive performance, pitching the entire seven-inning game for four strikeouts, with no walks, while scattering four hits.
The Huskies' offense wasn't bad either in that game, as shortstop Angie Berg went 2-3 at the plate, driving in two of SCSU's runs. First basemen Brooke Gentzler also had an RBI to bring her season total to 30.
The second game was a complete domination by St. Cloud over Mankato. Abby Bourman was a big part of that dominance, as she drove in six runs, which brings her season total to 43 RBIs and gives SCSU a new single season school record for RBIs. This breaks the old mark of 41, which was set back in 1986 and then tied in 1996, but never broken until Tuesday.
"Abby is really coming through for us now," said the winning pitcher for the Huskies, Tiffany Rose. "She's getting clutch hits we're needing, and people are getting on base for her."
"We hit amazing the second game," Webb said. "Our defense was great."
The defense sure was great as they played out a second straight shutout for the evening, 13-0. Rose's winning performance involved pitching all five innings, striking out one Maverick, and walking only one.
Rose was very happy, however, that the Huskies had rebounded so well from the shaky weekend.
"This past weekend was frustrating for the whole team," Rose said. "What's more important than losing (the Huskies lost 6-4 to Morningside on Saturday) is how you bounce back from that loss. You want to forget about it and turn the page."
And the Huskies definitely turned the page very well with their spectacular home finale.
All of this led into Wednesday's double-header match up with a dangerous South Dakota State team, who had beaten the number one team in the country, University of Nebraska-Omaha, earlier in the season.
"One day they (SDSU) could be an amazing team, one day they could be a not so great team." Webb said. "We're going to take it to them."
The Huskies definitely took it to the Jackrabbits Wednesday evening as they won both games 5-1, 8-7. Outfielder Cally Stewart had two RBIs and a double-bagger in the fist game of the evening. Third baseman Megan Fuches also hit well, going 2-3 at the plate and batting in a runner. Nicole Webb chalked another win onto her season total with the first game victory, bringing her record to 17-4.
In the second game, all three of St. Cloud's pitchers saw action during the Huskies fourth straight win. Again Gentzler added some offense with her two RBIs. Outfielder Jessica Swartout had some big offense for the Huskies also going 2-3 and driving in four Husky base runners.
"There's a lot of confidence in our bats right now," Rose said. "People are getting up to bat and swinging hard and getting good base hits."
Next up for the Huskies, the MSU, Mankato Invite this weekend. Two teams that SCSU will face are Concordia University, and Bemidji State University, teams that the huskies have beaten already this season.
"It's a good warm-up for us," Rose said. "We want to go 5-0 for sure, because we know we're better than the teams we're playing."
The Huskies keep building and building toward the NCC tournament in two weeks and have their confident eyes set on that conference championship.
"I know we can win it," Rose said. "I know we can beat UNO, because UNO is beatable. I know that our pitching can do it, I know that we can hold their bats."
The Huskies will not be intimidated by UNO in their quest for the NCC title.
"We're not scared of any team," Webb said.
Ben Dunsmoor can be reached at: [email protected]
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