RHINELANDER, Wis. – The UW-Stevens Point softball team (2-0) began its season on Friday with a doubleheader sweep of Marian (0-2) in Rhinelander, 2-0 and 9-6.
 
Junior Maddie Candre (St. Charles, Ill./East) extended her hitting streak to eight games with hits in both games.  She went 2-for-3 with a run scored in game one and drove in a pair in game two with a double.
 
Lauren Luedtke (Lomira, Wis./Lomira) collected a pair of knocks in each game.  She drove in the winning run in game one and added another RBI along with a run scored in game two. 
 
Sara Traxel (Oak Creek, Wis./Oak Creek) belted UWSP's first long ball of the year, one of three hits in game two.  She drove in three and scored twice.
 
Makenna Tkach (Streator, Ill./Marquette Academy) struck out nine on the day.  She picked up the victory in game one and earned the save in game two.
 
Game 1 – UWSP 2, Marian 0
Sammy Buerger (Oshkosh, Wis./North) led off the fourth inning with a single up the middle, UWSP's first hit of the year.  Candre followed with an infield single to put runners at the corners.  Luedtke also reached on an infield single with Buerger scoring on the play.  Two batters later, Megan Lawrence (Antioch, Ill./Antioch Community) doubled UWSP lead with an RBI groundout.
 
The Sabres posted their biggest threat in the sixth inning getting two in scoring position with just one away.  Tkach returned to the circle and got out of the jam with a strikeout and groundout.
 
Hits by Candre and Luedtke gave UWSP a one-out threat in the bottom of the sixth, but the Pointers were unable add to their lead.
 
Tkach went 5.2 frames to earn the win, her fifth career victory.  Lauren Lindahl (Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee) pitched 1.1 innings in relief with one strikeout.

Game 2 – UWSP 9, Marian 6
A leadoff error in the second inning opened the offensive floodgates for the Pointers.  Buerger reached on the miscue, stole second and third.  After a Kally VanLaanen (Green Bay, Wis./Ashwaubenon) walk put runners at the corners, Mackenzie Niespodzany (Pulaski, Wis./Pulaski) doubled to put UWSP ahead 1-0.  Consecutive RBI hits by Lillie Lindgren (Elburn, Ill./Kaneland), Becca Geiyer (Grayslake, Ill./Warren Township) and Traxel pushed the lead to 4-0.  Following a Marian pitching change, Luedtke and Candre continued the rally to put UWSP up 7-0.
 
The Sabres chipped away with two runs in the third and two more in the fourth.
 
Geiyer reached on a one-out error in the fourth.  Traxel then punished a pitch, lofting it over the fence in center field for a two-run home run as UWSP went up 9-4.
 
Marian scored twice more in the fifth inning to make it a three-run game.  Tkach entered in the sixth and struck out three in the final two frames to secure the win and pick up the save.
 
Freshman MacKenzie Honish (Oconto, Wis./Oconto) got the start and allowed three hits over two innings. Fellow freshman Allie Meyers (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest) also pitched two innings with two strikeouts.
 
The Pointers will travel to Peoria, Ill., on Friday (Feb. 26) for a pair of games in the MMU Collegiate Slugger Series.  UWSP will face Wisconsin Lutheran at 11:30 a.m. and Concordia University Chicago at 1:15 p.m.