SAINT PAUL, MINN.—The Hamline University softball team hosted Saint Mary's (Minn.) in a previously suspended game from April 11 with MIAC Tournament implications on the line at Meredith Field on Wednesday afternoon. The Pipers prevailed in the do-or-die scenario with a 5-4 (11 innings) victory, courtesy of
Kira Krueger's 11
th-inning walk-off RBI-double that scored
Amber Peterson.
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Hamline's victory gives them the No. 5 seed in the 2022 MIAC Tournament, which begins with a first-round game at St. Catherine tomorrow, Thursday, May 5 at 4:30 p.m. The Pipers will enter the MIAC Tournament with a 19-14 record, while the Cardinals end their season with a 16-17 overall record. Hamline will embark on their 12
th overall appearance in the MIAC postseason, and their first since 2019.
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Hamline 5, Saint Mary's (Minn.) 4 (11 Innings)
The Cardinals came out of the gates with a 2-0 lead in the first inning before Hamline scored all three of their regulation runs in the third inning.Â
Jenna Rubbelke's single andÂ
Amber Peterson's walk set upÂ
Megan Rubbelke's two-run double that tied things 2-2.Â
Megan Rubbelke later circled the bases onÂ
Gabby Cook's single, which gave the Pipers a 3-2 edge.
The Cardinals knotted the score at 3-3 in the sixth inning; where Alison Ciero singled, moved to second on Riley Hall's sacrifice bunt, and scored on Heather Nordlund's single.
The game was suspended due to darkness heading into the 10
th inning, where the international rule of tie break went into effect, and both teams traded a run to make the score 4-4. Saint Mary's (Minn.) run in the 10th inning occurred behind a pair of Hamline errors to make the score 4-3.Â
Theresa Klinnert's double scored
Lydia Lecher, who was placed on second base, to make things 4-4 in the bottom of the 10th. The Pipers locked a 5-4 victory in the 11
th inning behind
Kira Krueger's walk-off RBI-double that scored
Amber Peterson (placed on second).Â
Krueger finished the game with a 4-for-6 outing.Â
Jenna Rubbelke,
Megan Rubbelke, and
Raelyn Costley each notched two hits for the Pipers.
Klinnert pitched all 11 innings; as she allowed nine hits, four runs (three earned), and struck out three batters.