MADISON, WISC. - It was fitting that one of the Madison College softball team's seven second year players came through with the game-winning hit to open a doubleheader sweep of Sauk Valley Community College on Sophomore Day at Robert D. Goodman Softball Field Friday. Bailey Kratt's RBI single broke a tie in the bottom of the seventh and sent the WolfPack to a 10-9 walk-off win in the opener, before dismantling the Skyhawks 14-1 in five innings in the finale. Coach Leo Kalinowski and the 'Pack close the 2017 regular season with a 34-17 record, one win shy of last year's program record for regular season wins.

Game #1: Madison College 10, Sauk Valley Community College 9

After trailing by as many as seven runs, Madison College scored two in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game at nine. With runners at second and third, sophomore Lindsey Bollig reached on an error at second to bring the WolfPack within a run, and Claire Brzenk tied it up with a single to left that scored Bailey Kratt. It would be the Cudahy, Wisconsin, native that played the role of hero in the seventh. After Ashley Burg led off with a single, Brooke Heck and Ashley Kniesel loaded the bases with one out on an error and a walk. That brought Kratt to the plate, and she delivered with a single through the right side on an 0-1 pitch that sent Burg racing in for the game's winning run.

The day's first game began with a rough couple of innings for the WolfPack defensively. Sauk Valley's bats were red hot against starter Hannah Wienen, going for nine hits and six runs against the Scales Mound, Illinois, native and forcing her out of the game in the second inning. Fellow freshman Mackenzie Terrill took over and allowed one more run to score before finally ending the second inning.

However, Madison College slowly began to chip away at the deficit with a run in the second when Ali Braddock doubled in Kratt. Then in the third, the WolfPack put together a huge two-out rally to load the bases for Braddock, and the former Divine Savior Holy Angels High School standout came through with a bases clearing triple to center to make it a 7-4 differential.

After the Skyhawks added a pair of runs in the sixth to force Terrill from the game, the WolfPack continued to swing away. Two singles, a double, and an error - all with two outs - resulted in two runs in the bottom of the sixth to cut the deficit to two, and set the stage for the final push over the final two innings.

Sophomore centerfielder and leadoff hitter Brenna Seeber registered a team-best three hits, while five others also enjoyed multiple hits. Braddock was 2-for-4 with a career-high four runs batted in and one scored. Kratt, before driving in the final run, was credited for a season-high three runs scored as part of her 2-for-4 day.

Emily Wiederholt (8-3) took the win after tossing the final 2 2/3 innings. The freshman held SVCC to one hit while striking out two. Wienen was on the hook for seven runs, five of which were earned, on nine hits during her 1 1/3 innings. She did strike out two batters. And Terrill posted four innings of three-hit ball with one earned run out of two allowed. The righty walked five and struck out five.

Game #2: Madison College 14, Sauk Valley Community College 1 (5 innings)

The nightcap was a close game until the WolfPack exploded for nine runs in the third inning as rain began to fall in Madison. Already leading 2-0 following a Brooke Heck single the scored Brenna Seeber, as well as Claire Brzenk on a fielding error in left field, the 'Pack sent a dozen batters to the plate in the third. Brzenk opened with a single to right, and scored from first on Bailey Kratt's double to the centerfield wall. Three straight walks followed by a hit by pitch forced in successive runs before Katelin Gilbertson's sacrifice fly made it 6-0 and put the first out on the board. A second hit batter again loaded the bases for Seeber, who roped single to left to plate Ali Braddock, and Brzenk, whose hard grounder up the middle was good enough for Bre Feiler and Breanna Bollig to score for a nine-run edge. The monster inning ended with Brooke Heck driving in two runs on a double to center. The sophomore from Rubicon, Wisconsin, was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple after Brzenk and Kratt each scored.

The WolfPack made it 14-0 in the fourth, capped by Seeber's two-RBI triple to the wall in left. The native of Watertown, Wisconsin, again led Madison College in hits with another 3-for-4 game to finish the regular season with an eight-game hitting streak, during which she is batting .642 (18-for-28). Seeber and Heck both drove in three runs, while Brzenk finished with a team-leading three runs scored, to go along with two batted in.

Former Cuba City High School athlete Emily Wiederholt (9-3) pulled off the rare two-win day, tossing all five innings of game two for her team-leading ninth win of the season. The righthander surrendered one run on four hits and two walks, and struck out three opposing hitters to drop her team-leading ERA to 2.23.

Madison College is now 4-2 all-time against Sauk Valley Community College (25-23), winning three straight in the series.

Up next:

Madison College was scheduled to host College of Lake County for a doubleheader on Saturday, however, the games were cancelled. The 2017 Region IV Division II Tournament bracket will be released within the next few days, which is when the WolfPack will learn its seed and postseason opponent, as well as game times and locations.

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