GAME ONE
GAME TWO
MILWAUKEE, Wis. -- The Benedictine University softball team swept past MSOE on the road Sunday afternoon to claim its first Northern Athletics Conference Championship. Softball is the first Benedictine team this year to capture an outright NAC Title. Volleyball shared the title in the fall.
BENEDICTINE 6, MSOE 1 -- GAME ONE
The Eagles assured themselves of at least a share of the title with a win in the opener, putting the game away with four runs in the fifth.
Benedictine opened the scoring with two runs in the top of third. Aimee Mahoney reached second on an error, stole third, and crossed the plate on an error. Kara Walsh opened a two-out rally with a single, stole second, and crossed the plate when Cassie Cappetto singled up the middle.
The four-run fifth opened with a one-out single by Laura Christensen. Christensen stole second and scored when Brittany Wolski singled up the middle. Wolski stole second and Walsh recorded a single. Walsh stole second and Erin Galloway drove in a pair with a double. Sam Corban finished the scoring in the inning with a run-scoring single.
Brittany Adcox allowed just one run in a complete game effort, surrendering a two-out run in the seventh. The victory was her 20th of the season, furthering her career high total. Adcox posted five strikeouts and helped her cause with a pair of hits. Kara Walsh was 3-for-4 with a pair of runs scored.
BENEDICTINE 6, MSOE 0 -- GAME TWO
The Eagles officially clinched the NAC title with a shutout, breaking open a scoreless game with three runs in the sixth and three more in the seventh.
Wolski singled to begin the sixth and Walsh reached on an error. A double steal placed them both in scoring position for Cassie Cappetto, who tripled to center knocking in the first two runs of the contest. Galloway followed with a double to stretch the lead to 3-0.
Wolski and Walsh helped to cement the fate in the seventh with RBI singles. Sam Corban pitched the entire game, striking out nine in the shutout victory. Wolski led the offense with three hits while Mahoney and Galloway each posted a pair.
Benedictine (34-5, 23-1) matched the second best single season total for victories (The single season record for wins is 38), and also equaled the most under Head Coach Kate Keller, who won her 300th career game on Saturday. Keller has now won five conference titles in her tenure. Aurora University won the first three NAC titles and finished a game behind Benedictine this year.
As the top seed in the NAC Tournament, the Eagles will have a bye and will not play until 9:00 a.m. on Friday. The tournament will be held at Alverno College as Benedictine looks to return to the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2002.
