Titans Defeat Beavers, Maroons In Final At-Bat
The UW-Oshkosh softball team won twice in dramatic fashion Sunday (March 8) as Acacia Tupa launched a pair of home runs and Natalie Dudek drove in the decisive run during the first game of the day before the Titans exploded for seven runs in their final at-bat to win in eight innings during the nightcap in Rosemont, Ill.
UW-Oshkosh (5-1) avenged its lone loss of the year with a 4-3 victory over Buena Vista University (Iowa). The Titans then concluded their three-day sojourn to Illinois with a 12-7 triumph over University of Chicago (Ill.) in the second contest Sunday.
Buena Vista University (4-8) previously defeated UW-Oshkosh, 3-2, Friday (March 6) in Rosemont. The Titans picked up their seventh consecutive win over University of Chicago (1-1).
Madelyn Fink (4-0) was the winning pitcher for the Titans in both games Sunday, tossing a complete game in the opener and providing five innings of relief across two appearances in the second contest. Fink, who sports a 1.12 earned run average this season, struck out eight and walked just one across 12 innings on the day.
Tupa, Gabby Buikema and Amanda McIlhany each collected four of UW-Oshkosh's 21 total hits Sunday as the Titans compiled a .356 batting average, a .444 on-base percentage and a .492 slugging percentage in the two games.
During the win over Buena Vista University, Tupa hit a go-ahead solo home run in the bottom of the fourth inning before her leadoff homer in the sixth frame knotted the score at 3. Buikema was hit by a pitch following Tupa's second home run and went to second base on a Hannah Ritter sacrifice bunt. Dudek then plated Buikema with the eventual game-winning run with a single to left field.
Buena Vista University opened the scoring on a Carlee Guyett run-scoring single in the top of the first inning. UW-Oshkosh answered with a run in the home half of the first frame as Tupa walked, went to second base on a passed ball and scored on Ritter's one-out double to left-center field.
After Tupa's solo homer gave UW-Oshkosh the lead in the fourth inning, the Beavers reclaimed a 3-2 advantage with a pair of unearned runs during the sixth frame as a dropped fly ball allowed Savanna Pohlmann to score from second base and batter Mckynze Hansen to circle the bases.
Fink went the distance in the pitcher's circle for the Titans, holding Buena Vista University to three runs (one earned) on five hits with four strikeouts without issuing a walk.
Tupa was 3-for-3 with three runs scored and two runs batted in for UW-Oshkosh while McIlhany reached base in all three of her plate appearances, recording a pair of hits and a walk. The home runs were Tupa's ninth and 10th in three seasons with the Titans.
Buena Vista University's Peyton Gross was charged with the complete-game loss, yielding four runs on nine hits and five hits with two strikeouts. Gross (3-4) was the winning pitcher in a complete-game effort during the Beavers' 3-2 victory over UW-Oshkosh on Friday.
In the extra-inning victory over University of Chicago, UW-Oshkosh overcame deficits of 3-0 in the first inning and 4-2 in the second frame to take a 5-4 advantage in the top of the third. The Maroons knotted the score at 5 during the home half of the seventh inning. However, UW-Oshkosh put together its highest scoring inning of the season with seven runs on seven hits in the top of the seventh frame.
The Titans have now produced multiple-run innings on 11 occasions through six games this season.
Savannah Pinedo sent the game into extra innings on a single that scored Christie Ambrose to tie the score at 5 with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning.
Playing under international tiebreaking procedures, Chloe Lambie, the final batter of UW-Oshkosh's seventh inning, was placed at second base to begin the eighth frame. McIlhany immediately plated Lambie with a double for a 6-5 Titan lead.
Following a strikeout, eight straight Titans reached base safely as Tupa drove in McIlhany with a single, Buikema's single scored Tupa, Ritter and Dudek singled to load the bases, Ana Iliopoulos walked to plate Buikema, Natalie Dillon's single scored Ritter, Lambie was awarded first base via catcher's interference to allow Dudek to cross the plate, and McIlhany's single scored Iliopoulos for a 12-5 UW-Oshkosh lead.
University of Chicago pulled within 12-7 on a two-run single from Maddy Murdick with no outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, but Sidney Budzinski, who came on in relief of Fink, retired all three batters she faced to secure the win.
The Maroons' three-run first inning featured RBIs from Pinedo and Abby Hayes. The Titans then cut their deficit to 3-2 in the second inning following Iliopoulos' run-scoring single and a sacrifice fly by Lambie.
University of Chicago extended its lead to 4-2 in the second inning on a Lainey Hughes sacrifice fly. UW-Oshkosh claimed its first lead of the game at 5-4 in the third frame as Iliopoulos laid down a sacrifice bunt with two runners aboard, but the Maroon's catcher committed a throwing error on the play that allowed Iliopoulos to advance to second base and also allowed both Buikema and pinch-runner Kailee Garstecki to cross the plate. With one out and runners at first and third bases, Lambie lifted her second sacrifice fly of the game to plate Iliopoulos with the go-ahead run.
UW-Oshkosh outhit University of Chicago, 12-9, as Buikema went 3-for-5 to establish a career high for hits in a game and Dillon, Dudek and McIlhany each added two hits. Buikema, who extended her hitting streak to seven games, is now batting a team-leading .476 on the year.
Iliopoulos scored a season-high three runs and recorded two RBIs for the Titans while Lambie and McIlhany also drove in a pair of runs.
Fink earned the win out of the bullpen, allowing three runs (two earned) on seven hits and one walk with four strikeouts in relief of starting pitcher Emily Olson, who struck out two in two innings during her Titan debut.
Maroons relief pitcher Bethany Regnerus (1-1) was charged with the loss after surrendering seven runs (five earned) on five hits and a walk in one-third of an inning during UW-Oshkosh's eighth-inning outburst.
Hayes, Murdick and Pinedo each went 3-for-4 and combined for six runs batted in to lead the University of Chicago.
UW-Oshkosh is idle until playing 10 games in seven days on its annual trip to Claremont, Fla., from March 21-27. The Titans begin their Florida slate with games against State University of New York at Plattsburgh and Calvin University (Mich.) on March 21.