From Case Western Reserve University Athletics
Facing two must-win games in the 2022 NCAA Division III Softball Championship Regional Round, the 25th-ranked Case Western Reserve University softball team twice defeated #18 Concordia University Wisconsin at Mather Park in Cleveland, Ohio on Sunday afternoon, securing the team's spot in the Super Regional Round for the second time in program history.
The Spartans won the first game 6-4 in eight innings and prevailed 7-2 in the second game to win the Cleveland Regional.
CWRU (30-10) will advance to the Super Regional Round and face Trine University, the winner of the Angola, Indiana Regional, in a three-game series on Friday, May 20 and Saturday, May 21, at a time and location to be determined. Check athletics.case.edu later in the week for more information. The Falcons end their season with a record of 36-6.
After Case Western Reserve lost to Concordia on Saturday, the Spartans needed two wins to advance to the next round while the Falcons needed just one. First-year pitcher Lexi Miskey was named the Regional Most Outstanding Player after allowing three earned runs in 24 innings (0.88 earned run average) with 28 strikeouts in three starts. First-year pitcher Kylie Hosey, junior infielder Amanda Riely, and first-year outfielder Isabella Russo also earned All-Tournament Team honors.
Game Six: #25 CWRU 6, #18 Concordia (Wis.) 4 (8 inn.)
Russo opened the scoring for the Spartans in the first inning with a two-run home run to center field to give the team a 2-0 lead. Sophomore shortstop KaiLi Gross, who led off the inning with a single, scored on the homer. It was the sixth home run of the season for Russo, who went three-for-six on the day with three runs, two runs batted in, and a walk.
In the bottom half of the inning, the Falcons capitalized on two CWRU errors to take a 3-2 lead.
Neither Miskey nor Concordia pitcher Gina Followell allowed a run over the next three innings, despite traffic on the basepaths.
The Spartans struck next in the top of the fifth inning. With one out, Gross collected her second hit of the day with a single up the middle. Senior infielder Liv Thomas then delivered a pinch-hit double that plated Gross to tie the score at three.
In the seventh inning, junior infielder Amanda Riely hit a lead-off home run, her third of the season, to put CWRU ahead. However, Concordia tied the score on a wild pitch with two outs in the bottom of the inning to force the extra frame.
Russo led off the eighth inning with a walk and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt and a steal. Following a walk and a stolen base, Riely hit a hard liner to the second baseman that was misplayed, allowing two runs to score and giving the Spartans a 6-4 lead.
Miskey induced a double play to end the game in the bottom of the inning, forcing the decisive final game. The Spartan hurler allowed just one earned run in eight innings while adding five strikeouts. Gross had her fourth three-hit game of the campaign, while Thomas and Russo each added two hits.
Game Seven: #25 CWRU 7, #18 Concordia (Wis.) 2
Following a perfect first inning from Hosey, the Spartans scored three runs in the bottom half, igniting the home crowd attending the Regional Final. Gross led off the frame with a triple, her third of the season, and scored on a double from sophomore outfielder Stevie Rieger. With two outs, senior infielder Grace Yeung hit a two-run homer to left field to pad the lead. Yeung drove in four runs and scored twice in the game on two hits.
The Falcons scored in the fourth inning on a solo home run by Claudia Utz, her second of the tournament. Hosey retired the next six batters, and Case Western Reserve increased its advantage to five with three runs in the fifth inning. Russo and Rieger scored on a double from Yeung, who then crossed the plate on a single by junior outfielder Carli Tucci, making the score 6-2.
Concordia responded with a run in the sixth, but the Spartans reclaimed the five-run advantage on a double by Rieger in the bottom half. She finished the game with two doubles in three at bats, scoring twice and driving in two runs. In the seventh inning, sophomore outfielder Kela Jagoda sealed the victory with a catch on a flyout, sending Case Western Reserve to the Super Regional.
Hosey allowed just two earned runs in the game on six hits while striking out three. Gross and Jagoda each added two-hit games.
All-Tournament Team
Meri Bostic, Roanoke
Megan Bloyer, Concordia
Gina Followell, Concordia
Kylie Hosey, CWRU
Julia Mayernick, TCNJ
*Lexi Miskey, CWRU
Kaci Neveling, TCNJ
Amanda Riely, CWRU
Isabella Russo, CWRU
Claudia Utz, Concordia
*Most Outstanding Player