Titans Finish Second In WIAC Tournament
OSHKOSH, Wis.- The UW-Oshkosh softball team took down UW-Stevens Point 5-1 in the semifinal of the WIAC Tournament (Presented by Culver's) before falling to UW-Whitewater 2-1 in the championship game on Saturday (May 11) at the UW-Oshkosh Softball Park.
The Titans (39-4) struck early in the first inning against the Pointers (32-7) and never looked back in the four-run win.
Sydney Nemetz (Jr. • Marinette) earned her 17th win of the season for Oshkosh, which is ranked No. 12 in the nation by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association, after going five innings and allowing one run on four hits. Brianna Bougie (Fr. • Oshkosh) came in for two innings of relief work, allowing just one hit.
The Titans, who had 10 hits in the game, were led by catcher Sophie Wery (Jr. • Seymour) who had a four-RBI game and went 2-for-4 with a run scored.
Oshkosh opened the scoring in the first inning when Wery hit an RBI double to left field that scored Hannah Ritter (Sr. • Marengo, Ill.). In her next at-bat, Wery smashed a 3-run homer to left field that scored Ritter and Sydney Rau (Sr. • Downers Grove, Ill.) to give Oshkosh a 4-0 lead. The Titans tacked on another run in the bottom of the third inning after Abby Garceau (Jr. • Michicot) doubled to left field, driving in Lizzie Slobodecki (Jr. • Carol Stream, Ill.).
Stevens Point got on the board with an RBI single in the sixth inning, but Bougie was able to shut the Pointers down in the seventh as the Titans advanced to the championship game with the win.
The Warhawks (32-8) never trailed in the WIAC Championship after claiming a 2-0 lead in the second inning.
Oshkosh cut the deficit to one run after Rau got caught in a rundown heading to second base, allowing for Cali Divito (Jr. • Inverness, Ill.) to score from third base. The Titans were unable to get the tying run across the plate and went down in order in the top of the seventh Whitewater won the WIAC crown and earned an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.
Abby Freismuth (Sr. • Fond du Lac) received her first loss of the season for Oshkosh, going 1.1 innings and allowing an earned run on two hits. Bougie came in for 4.2 innings of relief, striking out four batters and allowing one hit.
The Titans will see if they earned an at-large bid into the NCAA Division III Softball Tournament when the field is released on Monday (May 13) at 10 a.m. The live selection show can be found on NCAA.com.
Written by Jacob Link, UW-Oshkosh Sports Information