North Central Box Score

TUCSON, Ariz. – On day four at the Tucson Invitational Games, the 18th-ranked UW-Stevens Point softball team defeated North Central College (IL) 4-1 to begin the day, but fell to California Lutheran 6-4 for its first loss of the season.

In the first game against North Central College, Pointers' pitcher Kayla Kastenmeier (Ashwaubenon/Ashwaubenon) (So.-Ashwaubenon) was dominant on the mound as she struck out nine and scattered nine hits in the complete game win over the Cardinals by a score of 4-1.

Laura Van Abel (Kaukauna/Kaukauna) (Sr.-Kaukauna) hit a RBI triple in the third inning to drive in Melissa Wenig (Oshkosh/West) (So.-Oshkosh/West) to give the Pointers a 1-0 lead. Stevens Point got another run in the fifth when Wenig hit a run-scoring single to plate Elyse Nelson (Batavia, IL/Batavia) (Fr.-Batavia, IL). The Pointers added insurance in the top of the seventh when Danielle Ashbeck (Wabeno/Wabeno) (Sr.-Wabeno) and Brittany Zelenka (Marathon/Marathon) (So.-Marathon) each had RBI singles to make the score 4-0.

North Central tried to make things interesting in the bottom of the seventh as they scored one run and had the tying run to the plate with no outs. However, Kastenmeier got a fly out, a strikeout, and a groundout to end the game and give the Pointers a 4-1 victory.

Van Abel, Wenig, and Zelenka each had a pair of hits to lead Stevens Point at the plate.

In the second game, the Pointers managed just six hits as it lost to Cal. Lutheran 6-4. Samantha Bizeau (Gladstone, MI/Gladstone) (Fr.-Gladstone, MI) was 2-for-3 with a home run and Korryn Brooks (Stevens Point/SPASH) (Sr.-Stevens Point/SPASH) was also 2-for-3, but it wasn't enough. Cal. Lutheran scored six runs on 10 hits to knock off Stevens Point.

The Pointers will face Manchester and Buena Vista tomorrow. The first game is at 11:15 a.m. local time.