Titans come back to put an end to Blue Devils' season

UW-Oshkosh 4, UW-Stout 3 (10 inn) | WIAC Championship Website | D3photography.com Photo Gallery

OSHKOSH (May 11, 2021) - UW-Stout had top-seeded UW-Oshkosh down for the count, but the Titans got up and came back to end Stout's season with a 4-3, 10-inning decision in the first round of the WIAC Softball Championship, presented by Culver's, Tuesday at the UW-Oshkosh Softball Park.

The Titans' Natalie Dudek lifted a sacrifice fly to center field with the bases loaded in the 10th inning to score the decisive run. 

The Blue Devils (6-26) ran out to a 3-0 lead before the Titans (21-10) began their comeback and Sommer Kunstmann was strong in the circle, going 9.2 innings, the longest outing in her collegiate career. 

Kunstmann scattered three hits over the first five innings, keeping zeroes on the Oshkosh side of the scoreboard as Stout built a 3-0 lead.

The Blue Devils scored first, plating a run in the first inning. Jessica Christiansen opened the game with a single down the left field line, moved to second on Kaylee Peterson's groundout. Meghan Kelly drew a walk and Titans' pitcher Maddie Fink hit consecutive batters to bring in Christiansen.  

Stout added two runs in the fifth inning to jump out to a 3-0 lead. Christiansen once again started the Blue Devils off, beating out an infield single and moved to third on Katelyn Belleau's double down the left field line. Kelly delivered a single, driving in both Christiansen and Belleau for the three-run lead.

The Titans knicked Kunstmann when Acacia Tupa hit a leadoff home run in the sixth inning to break up the shutout, but Stout still led 3-1. 

Kunstmann got into trouble in the seventh inning and it looked like she was going to get out of it. After a leadoff out, the Titans stroked back-to-back singles to put runners at first and second. Kunstmann forced a fly out for the second out and it looked like she would get the 3-1 win, but an infield error loaded the bases, giving the Titans new life. Tupa delivered again, this time hitting a full-count, two-out double to right field to tie the game at 3-3. 

The Titans loaded the bases again in the eighth inning with two outs, but Kunstmann and the Blue Devils came out unscathed when third baseman Kayli Pfeffer threw home on a hard shot back to her to get the final out of the inning.

Stout left two runners on in the ninth and one in the 10th and stranded eight for the game. The Titans also left eight on base. 

Kunstmann faced 43 batters, allowing 10 hits and two earned runs. She struck out one and walked two. The Titans' Claire Petrus worked the final five innings to get the win, allowing no runs and four hits, while striking out four. Fink struck out four batters, but walked two and hit two batters, allowing four hits and all three runs.

Christiansen went 2 for 5 and scored two runs.  Pfeffer was 2 for 4. Kelly was 1 for 4 with two RBI. Ashley Jacobson was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to record an RBI. Katelyn Belleau and Korin Hall each had a hit. 

Tupa led Oshkosh, going 2 for 5 with three RBI on a double and home run. Emily Cliver was 3 for 5 and Hannah Ritter was 2 for 5. The Titans will host a second round tournament game Thursday, May 13. 

The 10 inning game was the longest Stout has played since an 11 inning game  March 16, 2016, when the team played Eureka College in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Kunstmann's outing was the longest since Tori Workman went 11 innings, April 8, 2013, against UW-La Crosse. 

The game marked the end of the collegiate softball careers of Kunstmann, Christiansen, Kelly, Michala Belter, and Melea Bruns, 








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