St. Norbert Runs Table to Win Midwest Conference Championship

From Sports Information Director, May 9, 2010 | Softball
by Dan Lukes, dan.lukes@snc.edu, (920) 403-4077

LAKE FOREST, Ill. - St. Norbert College finished an unbeaten run through the Midwest Conference in 2010 with a 3-2 win over Lake Forest College in the title game of the MWC Tournament at Nick Wasylik Field.

The Green Knights, who went 13-0 in regular-season league play, went 3-0 during the four-team, double-elimination tournament to finish unbeaten against league foes this year. St. Norbert (30-6), which won 30 games for the first time ever, enters the NCAA Division III Tournament having won 25 of its last 26 games. Pairings for NCAA regional tournaments will be announced Monday morning.

St. Norbert took an early 1-0 lead in the second inning. Brittany Narges walked with one out and was sacrificed to second. Alyssa McGray's single up the middle scored Narges.

The Foresters answered with single runs in the third and fourth innings to take a 2-1 lead. Megan Harkins's single scored Jill Pfund in the third, and Pfund's double to right scored Jeannette Andresen in the fourth.

The Green Knights rallied in the fifth after the Foresters pulled ace pitcher Jordan Ratliff for Molly Thomsen. Stephanie Ortiz promptly singled and stole second. After a pair of strikeouts, Jessica Kropp singled to right to score Ortiz.

Lake Forest's Sam Pinsonneault had a leadoff double in the fifth to chase St. Norbert ace Kayla Krueger. Kari Corbeille came on to retire the next three hitters to keep the game tied.

St. Norbert scored the winning run in the sixth. With two outs and nobody on, McGray singled and Collette Ullmer walked. Tracy Palmer, who extended her St. Norbert single-season hits record to 47, singled up the middle to score McGray.

The Foresters would get the leadoff runner on in both the bottom of the sixth and seventh innings, but couldn't get the tying run across.

Corbeille improved to 10-3 with three innings of scoreless relief, allowing two hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Thomsen took the loss, allowing four hits and two runs with one walk and two strikeouts in 1 2/3 innings.