Norse fall to gusties in semifinals of regional tournament
May 8, 2009
Gustavus Adolphus scored five runs on four hits en route to a 5-3 semifinal victory over Luther this afternoon in the second day of action of he NCAA III National Tournament. Simpson College is hosting the eight-team first round bracket May 7-9.
The Gusties did all of their damage in the first three innings. Lead-off hitter Emily Klein started the game with a home run off Norse starter Kelsey Hake. In the second inning, the Gusties scored a second run in the second frame on a bases loaded walk given up by Kim Lambert, who replaced Hake with two outs. In the third, Gustavus scored three runs on two hits, that included a two-run double.
The Norse tied the game at 2-2 in bottom half of the second thanks to a two-run single by Kayla Denner. Abby Christian drove in Luther's final run with a single in the sixth. The Norse managed just four hits off Gusties starter Erin Truebenbach.
Luther (34-10) is now in the elimination portion of the tournament bracket and will face the top seed of the tournament the University of St. Thomas tomorrow at 2:00 p.m. The loser of this game will be eliminated due to two losses, while the winner will play a second game tomorrow that will begin at 6:00 p.m. St. Thomas, who entered the tournament ranked #2 in the nation, stayed alive with a 5-3 victory over UW-La Crosse.
