Wayne State’s softball team earned its first conference sweep of the season Friday, defeating MSU Moorhead 8-7 and 5-1 in action Friday in Moorhead, Minn.
In the first game, the Wildcats came from behind with three runs in the seventh inning to earn the come-from-behind victory.
Consecutive singles by Monique Alyea, Melanie Alyea and Jordyn Breitbarth got the rally started. After a fielder’s choice, both Alyeas came home on an error when Abbie Hix reached base. to tie the game. Alyssa Schropp followed with a sacrifice fly to score Breitbarth and the Wildcats hung on for the win.
Wayne State took a 3-0 lead early in the game, getting an RBI triple by Rachel Shumaker and a Hix RBI single in the second and a solo homer by Monique Alyea in the third.
Moorhead came back to take a 4-3 lead in the fourth, but Wayne State came back in the fifth on a two-run homer by Brietbarth to make it a 5-4 game.
Moorhead came back again with three runs in the bottom of the fifth, to make it 7-5, but the Wildcats used their big three-run seventh to come away with the win.
Breitbarth went 3-for-4 with a homer, triple, two RBI and three runs scored. Melanie Alyea was 2-for-3 and scored twice and Monique Alyea went 2-for-4 with a homer. Nataliah Hopkins got the win with four innings in relief of starter Riley Vanderveen.
In the second game, Shumaker got the Wildcats on the board with an RBI double in the fourth inning, then got another Shumkaer RBI in the fifth to make it 2-0.
In the sixth, Katelyn Wobken cranked a three-run homer to make it a 5-0 game. the Dragons got a run in the bottom of the sixth, but Hopkins finished off the complete-game win by setting the Dragons down in the seventh.
Shumaker led an 11-hit attack with three hits, including a double and two RBI’s. Wobken and Breitbarth both had two hits apiece. Hopkins struck out three and allowed seven hits and two walks.
Wayne State (10-30, 4-12 NSIC) plays again on Saturday at 12 p.m. at Northern State in Aberdeen, S.D.
