The Augustana softball team got off to a good start Friday at the 2010 NSIC Softball Championships in Sioux Falls, S.D. The No. 1 seeded Vikings knocked off No. 8 seed Southwest Minnesota State 7-3 at Bowden Field.
The Vikings took charge early in the game as
Kayla Henke led the first inning off with a walk.
Jenny Brown followed that with a single through the left side, setting up a three-run homer by
Elizabeth Murray to give Augie a 3-0 lead.
SMSU answered quickly, stringing together two singles and a walk to load the bases. A double by Brittany Hallahan scored two runs and kept the Mustangs in the game.
Augie had another big inning in the fourth, thanks in part to some untimely errors by SMSU. With one out,
Britt Stewart reached on an error by the short stop before advancing to second on the throw.
Taylor Kapsch followed that up with a single to the short stop, moving Stewart to third. A single to center by Henke scored two runs to build the Viking lead to 5-2.
But Augie wasn't done yet. Brown reached on a fielder's choice and a single by Murray moved her to second. A
Traci Fransen double scored Brown to put the Vikings up by three.
The Vikings were able to put up one more run in the fifth, and a solo home run by the Mustangs in the sixth made the final 7-3.
Ashley Meyer (18-3) got the win for the Vikings, going all seven innings and striking out nine batters.
Fransen was 3-for-4 with one RBI while Murray went 3-for-2 and batted in three.
The Vikings will take the field again versus the No. 5 seeded Minnesota State at 4 p.m. at Bowden Field.
