Prior to Monday the Warhawks had not lost to UW-Stout since 2005.  UW-W kept that streak alive, now winners of twelve straight against the Blue Devils, after a doubleheader sweep on Monday in Menomonie.  The Warhawks blanked Stout in game one 9-0 and won game two 13-2 in five innings courtesy of the eight run rule.  The Warhawks improve to 26-8 overall and conclude regular season play in the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference with a record of 11-5.  UW-Stout falls to 16-22 overall and 3-13 in the WIAC.

game one box score
game two box score

Game one recap
After a scoreless first inning, UW-W got on the board with an RBI double by Jordyn Gaza (Mundelein, IL/Carmel Catholic) to left field in the top of the second inning.  Kate McDonnell (Aurora, IL/West Aurora) also drove in a run in the frame with a single to left.

Jessica Stang (Minnetonka, MN/Minnetonka) struck out the side in the bottom of the second and received two more runs of support in the top of the third.  The first run was scored by Emily Muche (Van Dyne/Winnebago Lutheran) on a double by Laura Eichenold (Elmwood Park, IL/Trinity).  Eichenold came around to score when the next batter, Shauna Binsfeld (Cedarburg/Grafton), also doubled.

Stang struck out the side again in the bottom of the third.  A scoreless fourth and fifth led into a three run sixth inning by UW-W.  The Warhawks scored two on another double, this time by Lauren Rankins (Marengo, IL/Marengo), and one on a single by catcher Emily Epifanio (Park Ridge, IL/Maine South).

McDonnell drove in another run in the top of the seventh on yet another Warhawk double, and Tina Galuk (Lake in the Hills, IL/Crystal Lake South) plated the final UW-W run on a single in the same inning.

UW-W doubled five times in the game and each double produced a run.  Seven different Warhawks drove in a run and eleven different Warhawks collected a hit.

Stang never faced more than four batters in any inning and sat down the Blue Devils 1-2-3 three times.  She struck out twelve in the game and has struck out double-digit batters in eight games this year, including a 16 strikeout performance, a school record, against Keene State back on March 19 in Fort Meyers, Florida.  She improves to 19-3 this season.

Game two recap
The Warhawks scored in every inning, and although the game was only five innings, they scored 13 runs, tying them for their highest offensive output of the season.

Two runs in the first and third and three in each of the second, fourth and fifth was how the Warhawks got the job done.

An Epifanio two-run blast in the first propelled UW-W to a 2-0 lead and they never looked back.  Stout tallied a run in the first, but UW-W blew things open in the second with three more runs on a McDonnell homer and another two runs in the third on a solo homer by Binsfeld and an RBI triple by Amanda Mertes (Des Plaines, IL/Elk Grove).

Stout responded with a run in the third, but never posed much of a threat in the game.  Three more UW-W runs in the fourth, two on a Binsfeld double and one on a Gaza single, and three in the fifth, two on a Samie Seamon (Antioch, IL/Antioch) single and another on a fielder's choice, rounded out the scoring for the game.

Katie Boyle (Greendale/Thomas More) earned her fifth victory of the season, pitching all five innings while scattering five hits and two runs.

Nine Warhawk batters recorded a hit with Epifanio leading the way with three and each of the nine UW-W starters reached base safely at some point in the game.

The Warhawks await the results of Tuesday's final conference games to see where they will be seeded in the WIAC tournament which will be held at UW-River Falls regardless of the remaining games outcomes.  The tournament is slated to begin on May 6 and run through May 8.  The WIAC tournament website can be found by clicking here.

For additional information, Brenda Volk, UW-W head coach