DIXON, ILL. - Madison College softball took both legs of Wednesday's Region 4 doubleheader against Sauk Valley Community College. The WolfPack won the first game in dominant fashion with a 14-0 decision in five innings to mark the team's second shutout win this season, and then narrowly got by in the finale with a 4-2 victory. The two wins improves the Pack to a 21-5 record all-time against the Skyhawks.

Game #1 - Madison College 14, Sauk Valley CC 0 (5 innings)

Madison College busted open the flood gates in the second inning with six runs on six hits and two errors. An error and back-to-back singles loaded the bases with no outs for second year third baseman Hanna Stremkowski, whose single to center kicked off the scoring as Hayden Schabel and Raegen Schwarz crossed home plate for the game's first runs. Freshman Cathryn Zegadlo then scored on the second error of the inning against SVCC. A pop fly single from designated player Shelby Brooks plated Stremkowski, and consecutive run-scoring base hits from Cassie Coffey and Schabel made it 6-0.

The third inning saw the WolfPack's lead grow even larger, starting with Kelsey Meverden's single to centerfield that scored Addie Fritts. As Sauk Valley threw the ball around, an error by the catcher created a scoring opportunity that Brooks and Sadie Svendsen take advantage of. Up 10-0 lead, Coffey smacked a triple to right field, and later reached thanks to a passed ball. 

Svendsen's run-scoring single in the fourth brought in Zegadlo to extend the lead to a dozen. In the fifth inning, pinch hitter Ella Knoble used a productive ground out to drive in Coffey, and a two-out single from Addalyn Henderson scored Madison's 14th run of the day with Emily Bopes crossing home.

While the offense was racking up double-digit runs and hits, sophomore pitcher Lauryn Etienne (5-1) was cooking up double-digiti strikeouts. The righthander pitched all five innings, netting ten strikeouts and allowing just four hits as she earned her fifth win of the season and lowered her earned run average to 1.62, which ranks third in Region 4. Etienne now boasts three games this season with ten or more strikeouts.

Coffey, a former Sun Prairie East HS athlete, was 3 for 4 with two runs scored and one batted in. It's the freshman's fourth game with at least three hits. Zegadlo was the only other player with multiple hits as the Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, native, reached base and scored twice. Meverden and Stremkowski each had a hit, one run, and two runs scored, while Brooks crossed home twice and drove in another as part of a 1 for 3 day.

Game #2 - Madison College 4, Sauk Valley Community College 2

The second game of the day was played a little more competitively, despite Madison College quickly taking a 2-0 lead. Two batters after Cassie Coffey led off the game with a single to right, designated player Ella Knoble ripped a single to right to score Coffey for a 1-0 edge. After an error kept the inning alive, third baseman Haleigh Benisch put a ball in play that resulted in another error and a run scored as Knoble touched home.

Sauk Valley Community College (3-19) would score its first run of the day in the bottom of the second on a two-out single after a leadoff double. They pulled even at 2-2 in the bottom of the third with yet another two-out base hit off pitcher Gretta Lewis.

Lewis' teammates responded in the next half inning. After Bailey Mester singled and Coffey walked, Knoble delivered again with a clutch single to the gap in right-center that scored Mester. Raegen Schwarz added some breathing room with a hard grounder up the middle that allowed Coffey to race in from second for a 4-2 lead.



Gretta Lewis (4-2) and the defense took care of the rest, never allowing more than one person to reach base in any inning after that. pitched all seven innings for Madison. The first year arm allowed two runs, one of which was earned, on five hits and one walk.

Schwarz produced a season-high three hits and the Appleton, Wisconsin, native drove in one run. Knoble, a former Milton HS athlete, came through with her first collegiate hits as she went 2 for 4 with two RBI and a run scored. Coffey had a hit and a walk en route to scoring two runs from the leadoff spot. 

Up Next: 

Madison College (12-8) will welcome in-state and Region 4 rival Milwaukee Area Technical College (8-16) on Thursday, April 9 after the doubleheader was moved from Tuesday and from Oak Creek, Wisconsin. The WolfPack is 23-14 all-time against the Stormers, who have won three of the last four meetings after the WolfPack won 15 straight. First pitch at Robert D. Goodman Softball Field is set for 3:00 p.m., with live video at MadisonCollege.tv. Live stats are available via the GameChanger app.

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