FREEPORT, ILL. - After a week off following a pair of much-needed wins at home April 7, the Madison College softball team made it back-to-back sweeps Friday with two road wins over Highland Community College in a Region 4 matchup. The WolfPack rallied twice from a two-run deficit to win the opener 11-7, and then trailed by a run after four innings in the nightcap before securing an 8-6 decision. The Pack now boasts a 12-game win streak over the Cougars, as well as an 18-6 lead in the all-time series.

Game #1: Madison College 11, Highland Community College 7

With two outs in the first inning, the WolfPack put runners aboard with an error and a walk, and sophomore Ellie Rademacher took advantage with a run-scoring single and a 1-0 lead. Highland responded with three runs on four hits against second year starter Claire Smedema. Makenna Gish stole home in the third to pull the Pack within a run, and Karis Paulson's double to center drove in Chariell Butler to tie the score at 3-3 in the fourth.

The Cougars plated two more runs in the home half of the fourth to regain a 5-3 edge, which remained until a three-run top of the sixth. Three singles loaded the bases and a walk of Paulson forced in the first run. A fielder's choice off the bat of Sammy Nelson brought two runs in to give Madison the lead at 6-5. Another HCC run in the sixth tied the game, but only for a moment as the WolfPack exploded with a five-run seventh to take control of the game. Freshman Jenna Redders hit a sacrifice fly to break the tie and ignite the surge. Mackenna Schultz and Gish sandwiched a pair of RBI-singles around two runs scoring via an error and a fielder's choice. 

Butler, a native of La Crosse, Wisconsin, scored a team-best three runs and was 2 for 4 at the plate. Gish finished with two hits, two runs scored, and one run batted in, and Briar Armatoski had two hits and a run scored. Nelson drove in three runs despite not recording a single hit in five official at-bats.

Smedema worked five strong innings and was tagged for five runs, four of which were earned, on nine hits and two walks. The Watertown, Wisconsin, native struck out five before Hannah Aldrich entered to start the sixth, but was unable to get out of the frame after surrendering an unearned run on a hit, one walk, and one strikeout. Kiana Patterson (4-3) took over and picked up the win. She tossed 1.1 innings of no-hit softball and two walks while giving up an unearned run.

Game #2: Madison College 8, Highland Community College 6

Madison College got to scoring runs early in the finale with RBI at-bats for Sammy Nelson and Ellie Rademacher in the first inning, which opened with a Karis Paulson triple. Makenna Gish doubled home Nelson in the second. Highland kept pace with a run in the first and two in the second off starter Kiana Patterson to make it 3-3 after two.

A two-out single in the bottom of the third gave the Cougars a 4-3 lead, which lasted until the top of the fifth. Back-to-back singles from Patterson and Sophie Rivera opened the inning, and Jenna Redders doubled to right to even the score at 4-4. Following a Mackenna Schultz two-bagger, freshman Madison Coubal smashed her first career home run with a long ball to right that cleared the fence and scored three runs for a 7-4 advantage. 

Highland didn't quit, and cut the differential to one with two runs in the fifth, but the Pack got an insurance run in the sixth as Patterson's line drive to left was enough to bring in Nelson from second base. The Cougars did put the tying run aboard in the seventh with runners at the corners and no out, however, Patterson finished off her complete game victory with three consecutive outs.

Patterson, a Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, native, improved to a team-best 5-3 on the season with her team-leading fourth complete game. The righthander struck out seven batters and walked one, while also giving up a dozen hits and six runs, only one of which was earned. The sophomore gave herself an assist with three hits and a RBI at the plate batting cleanup.

Coubal, a former Muskego HS athlete, was tops with three runs batted in thanks to her home run. Nelson and Redders each had two hits and a run batted in, with the former scoring twice and the latter added one run scored.

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