Viterbo takes doubleheader from Knights

By BOB VARMETTE

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- A familiar lament keeps on playing for the Martin Luther Knights. It's a discouraging tune about hard-hit balls, stranded runners and opportunities gone wrong.

The song got a couple of more plays Wednesday as the Viterbo V-Hawks swept the Knights 6-2 and 5-1 in nonconference softball. MLC has now lost seven straight games.

The frustration level perhaps rose just a bit higher for the Knights against Viterbo. If anything, the Knights hit the ball even better than they had in their loss to Northwestern (Roseville) Tuesday.

"It's not that we're not hitting the ball, it's that we're not getting consecutive hits," MLC second baseman Jen Nommensen said. "It gets frustrating, but today was a lot of improvement. We didn't get many strike outs."

MLC (2-11) had only one batter go down on strikes in the second game of the doubleheader. Viterbo's Lisa Promersberger (10-6), who got the win in both games, was far from overpowering and it seemed like she might be the pitcher that would prompt a Knight breakout from their offensive doldrums.

But it was not to be. And, again, it wasn't that the Knights didn't have chances.

After stranding seven runners Tuesday, MLC left nine on base against the V-Hawks in the second game -- seven in scoring position. The Knights left the bases loaded in the second and twice stranded two runners.

"This is the most solid contact we've been making," MLC coach Barb Leopold said. "Unfortunately, it's either to somebody, or they made a nice defensive play. They took away some base hits. And it's the timing of the hits -- we need to know we can get a hit when there are runners on."

Both Leopold and Nommensen hit the nail on the head. They know what the problem is -- stringing some hits together.

Promersberger scattered six hits in the second-game win, and the only run she surrendered was unearned.

It was another equally frustrating day for the Knight pitchers -- Sarah Scharf (1-4) in the first game and Jana Benrud (0-5) in the second game. Scharf went the distance and looked strong until the seventh inning, eventually finishing with five earned runs allowed on nine hits; Benrud also went the distance, giving up four earned runs on seven hits.

"This is one of the strongest games I've seen Jana throw since earlier in the season," Leopold said. "To be honest with you, I thought she was really throwing well today. She seemed to mix up location and the types of pitches. She did a nice job out there."

Benrud gave up a run each in the first and second innings, but extricated herself from jams in both innings. Viterbo pushed across another run in the top of the fourth before adding the two final runs in the seventh.

In their two-run seventh, the V-Hawks took advantage of four hits, including three in a row to start the inning. It was a lesson in manufacturing runs the Knights are looking to duplicate.

In the Knights' half of the first inning they got their first three runners aboard and shortstop Rachel Wilkens got as far as third base. Nommensen, who went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, reached on a fielder's choice and the Knights had runners at second and third with one out.

But Promersberger got Erin Gray to line out and Kelly Gawrisch to fly out to center to get out of the inning.

MLC got its only run in the bottom of the second. Rachel Kassulke singled to lead off the inning and scored on a pair of V-Hawks' errors and two fielder's choices to cut Viterbo's lead to 2-1.

But the Knights, who had the bases loaded with one out, again failed to capitalize.

MLC mounted an incipient two-out rally in the sixth inning with Hannah Berg singling to left and Benrud reaching on an error. But Promersberger induced pinch hitter Erin Enter, who went 2-for-3 with a double and two runs scored in the first game, to ground to short and force Benrud at second.

Nommensen doubled to the fence in left-center in the seventh, but one batter later Gray flew out deep to right field to end the game.

"Sometimes, it's frustrating losing the close games," Nommensen said. "But what I think our team does a really good job of is after the game is over forgetting what happened and moving on to the next one. That's a really good thing about our team."

MLC will travel to Duluth to play St. Scholastica Friday.

2nd Game

VITERBO 110 100 2--5 7 4

MARTIN LUTHER 010 000 0--1 6 4

Promersberger and Koski. Benrud and Kassulke. W--Promersberger 10-6. L--Benrud 0-5. HRs--None.