LEESBURG, Fla. – The University of Minnesota Crookston softball team picked up a sweep Monday, March 13 at The Spring Games at the Sleepy Hollow Complex in Leesburg, Fla. The Golden Eagles defeated D'Youville University 8-5 in the first game and took down the University of Illinois-Springfield 7-4 in the nightcap.
Minnesota Crookston improved to 9-13 with Monday's wins. The Golden Eagles are 3-3 in The Spring Games this season. D'Youville dropped to 3-7 Monday. Illinois-Springfield fell to 17-8. The Golden Eagles have four wins over teams with 10 or more wins this season. The games Monday were delayed due to lightning and rain in Central Florida. UMN Crookston finally took the field for their first game at 4 p.m., two hours later than scheduled.
Game One
Minnesota Crookston jumped out to a 7-1 lead early against D'Youville. The Saints scored four runs in the final two innings to make it interesting, but the Golden Eagles closed the door to pick up the win.
Charlotte Dombrowski (Fr., RHP/OF, Valparaiso, Ind.) got the win in the circle after tossing 6.1 innings, allowing just two runs, on eight hits. She struck out one and walked four.
Evie Stuck (So., RHP, Papillion, Neb.) got the final two outs of the game, as she went 0.2 innings. She allowed one run on two hits.
The loss went to Lauren Booth, who allowed four earned runs on eight hits in 3.1 innings of work. Booth struck out one and walked two.
The Golden Eagles notched 11 hits in the first game.
Whitnee Curry (So., MIF, Lincoln, Neb.) went 3-of-4 with two RBIs.
Alina Avalos (Sr., IF, Riverside, Calif.) finished 2-of-4, with two RBIs, and two runs scored. Dombrowski went 2-of-3, with three RBIs, and a run scored.
Maddie Shwaluk (Jr., OF, Portage la Prairie, Manitoba) went 3-of-3.
Reagan Emerick (Jr., MIF, Macomb, Ill.) finished 1-of-3, with two runs scored.
UMN Crookston jumped out to an early 1-0 lead when Curry singled down the line, plating Avalos.
The Saints evened the score 1-1 in the second when Jamie Bower hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Hannah Bardeen.
The Golden Eagles took the 4-1 lead when Dombrowski delivered a clutch triple to clear the bases, scoring
Paige Shwaluk (Jr., MIF, Portage la Prairie, Manitoba), Emerick, and
Haley Koch (Jr., C, Mondamin, Iowa).
Minnesota Crookston added three runs in the fourth. Avalos doubled to left center to plate
Paige Shwaluk, and Emerick. Later in the frame, Avalos came in by taking home after the Saints caught the runner stealing at second.
D'Youville trimmed the deficit to 7-3 in the sixth. Gianna Adamo singled, driving in Olivia Goderis. Bower scored on the same play on an error in left field.
UMN Crookston pushed the lead to 8-3 in the sixth when Curry singled up the middle, scoring Dombrowski.
The Saints pulled within 8-5 on a two-run home run from Bardeen, driving in herself, and Emily Przybysz. D'Youville had a further threat with runners on first and second but Stuck came through with a crucial strikeout to preserve the win.
Game Two
Minnesota Crookston built on the momentum from the early game as they took down Illinois-Springfield, who came into the game with 17 wins this season. The Prairie Stars secured 31 wins in 2022.
The Golden Eagles trailed 3-2 going into the top of the fifth, but scored five runs in the final three frames to win 7-4 Monday.
Thayda Houser (Jr., RHP, Seymour, Iowa) got the win in relief to move to 4-1 this season. She tossed 3.1 innings, allowing one run on six hits. Houser struck out four and walked one.
Gracelynn Kelly (Fr., RHP, Black Hawk, S.D.) got the start and went 1.2 innings. She allowed two runs on one hit. Kelly left the game due to an injury.
Alexa Guilford (Fr., LHP, Crystal City, Manitoba) inherited a runner on third, but pitched out of a difficult situation in the second stanza. Guilford pitched two innings, allowing one run on three hits. She struck out two and walked one.
The loss for the Prairie Stars went to Taylor Zawacki, who allowed three earned runs on five hits. She struck out three.
UMN Crookston finished with 10 hits in the second game. Avalos went 2-of-4, with two RBIs.
Dana Zarn (Sr., 3B, Winnipeg, Manitoba) finished 2-of-4, with one RBI, and two runs scored. Curry went 2-of-4, with two RBIs, and a run scored. Dombrowski went 1-of-3, with a run scored.
Paige Shwaluk went 1-of-4, with two runs scored.
Shaelyn Grant (Jr., OF/C, Grand Junction, Colo.) was 1-of-4, with an RBI.
Illinois-Springfield jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second. Jillian Mathis crossed on a wild pitch. The Prairie Stars added another as Ramsey Armstrong scored on a wild pitch.
Minnesota Crookston knotted the score 2-2 in the fourth. Curry opened things up with an RBI single, plating Zarn. Grant then came through with a single, driving in Curry.
The Prairie Stars took the lead back 3-2 in the bottom of the fourth when Ella Brinkley drove in Olivia DeLuca.
The Golden Eagles made a major move in the fifth inning with four runs. Avalos opened the scoring with a single, driving in
Paige Shwaluk. Zarn then singled in Dombrowski as UMN Crookston went ahead 4-3. A Curry RBI single, plated pinch-runner Emerick. UMN Crookston capped off the inning with a
Maddie Shwaluk sacrifice fly, scoring Zarn.
In the sixth, Avalos singled in
Paige Shwaluk to push the lead to 7-3.
The Prairie Stars obtained a run in the bottom of the sixth when Danielle Dennis drove in Brinkley. Illinois-Springfield had a runner reach in the bottom of the seventh, but Houser struck out two of the final three batters to pick up the 7-4 victory.
Minnesota Crookston wraps up their trip to the Sunshine State Tuesday, March 14. The Golden Eagles face the University of New Haven Tuesday, March 14 at 8 a.m. C.T., and Saint Michael's College Tuesday, March 14 at 10:30 a.m. C.T.
