DWU softball gets back on track with sweep of Midland

MITCHELL, S.D. – After dropping four straight, the Dakota Wesleyan University softball team got back to its winning ways with a sweep of Midland University in a Great Plains Athletic Conference doubleheader Sunday at McWhirter Field in Mitchell, S.D.

The Tigers got a three-run home run from freshman Sierra Haage (Sioux Falls, S.D.) in game one to take the opener 5-2, while junior pitcher Lorissa Loeppky (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada) shut down the Warriors in game two for an 8-0 win in five innings.

The wins push DWU to 25-17 overall and 8-6 in the GPAC, as the Tigers get set for eight straight games on the road over the next week and half.

The Tigers trailed the Warriors 2-1 heading to the bottom of the fifth in game one, when DWU broke out for four runs to take control. The scoring started when, DWU perfectly executed a double steal, which saw sophomore Paige Kinley (Worthington, Minn.) swipe home plate to tie the score. Later in the inning, Haage blasted her fifth home run of the season over the center field fence, putting DWU up three.

Freshman pitcher Hallie Misiaszek (Mitchell, S.D.) did the rest, allowing two runs on seven hits, while walking one and striking out three in the win. She is now 9-5 this season.

Senior catcher Hailey Unger (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada) finished 3-for-3 at the plate, while freshman Andriana Sprakel added two hits. DWU totaled five runs on nine hits with no errors in the win.

As she did in the first game, freshman Karly Severance (Las Vegas, Nev.) got DWU on the board in the first inning with an RBI single to center field. The Tigers added three in the third, including a two-run double off the bat of senior Vanessa Mendez (Monterey Park, Calif.).

With DWU up 4-0 in the fourth, freshman sensation Savannah Ahumada (Turlock, Calif.) came to the plate and drove in a run with a single to left field. The hit was Ahumada's second of the game and her 54th of the season, setting a new DWU record for hits in a season. Ahumada is currently one run and one double shy of adding those season records to her resume, while she already snapped the record for RBIs in a season Saturday.

Unger added two more hits in game two and continues to chase down the school record for hits in a career. She has 158 in her outstanding four years as a Tiger, just eight away from Nicole Haley's (2009-2012) 166. Unger already holds the Tiger career marks for home runs (14), doubles (35) RBIs (95) and runs scored (91).

Loeppky (5-4) kept the Warriors off balance in the contest, allowing no runs on six hits, while walking one and striking out two. The Tigers finished with eight runs on 11 hits with no errors in the game two win.

The Tigers continue GPAC play against rival Mount Marty College at 4 p.m. Wednesday in Yankton, S.D.