STEVENS POINT, Wis. – The UW-Stevens Point softball team (18-16, 3-9) got 11 shutout innings from Makenna Tkach (Streator, Ill./Marquette Academy) in a home sweep of UW-Stout (12-24, 2-14) on Friday. UWSP won game one, 7-0, before Tkach tossed six shutout frames in an 8-0 game two victory. It was UWSP's first consecutive shutouts of the season.
 
Offensively, Jesse Klicker (Spring Grove, Ill/Richmond-Burton Community) led the way with five hits on the day. She scored three runs. Sara Traxel (Oak Creek, Wis./Oak Creek) and Abby Van Beek (Mayville, Wis./Mayville) had RBI in both games. Traxel had three RBI on the day and scored a run in each game. Van Beek drove in four.
 
Tkach tossed 11 of the 13 innings played on Friday. She had four strikeouts and scattered five hits. MacKenzie Honish (Oconto, Wis./Oconto) pitched two perfect innings to complete the game one shutout. She fanned two.
 
Game 1 – UWSP 7, Stout 0
The Pointers had runners on in the first and the third, but didn't break through until the fourth. When UWSP broke through, it flooded the scoreboard with seven unearned runs in the frame.
 
Van Beek started the rally by reaching on an error. Meg Lawrence (Antioch, Ill./Antioch Community) tripled to drive her in. Another error allowed a second run to score. Allie Meyers (Oak Forest, Ill./Oak Forest) drove home two runs with a single. Maddie Candre (St. Charles, Ill./East), Traxel and Van Beek all added an RBI in the inning as UWSP went up 7-0.
 
Tkach and Honish protected the lead by retiring the side in order each of the final three innings. The duo faced just one over the minimum in the game.
 
Game 2 – UWSP 8, Stout 0 (6)
Klicker ripped a double to right to begin the first inning. Candre drew a walk and Klicker scored from second on a sac bunt by Traxel. Van Beek lofted a deep fly to right for a sac fly as UWSP took a 2-0 lead.
 
The lead remained two until the sixth. Meyers reached on an error to start the frame. Klicker and Candre both singled to load the bases. Traxel drove in a run and reached on a fielder's choice. Van Beek followed with a two-RBI single. Lawrence drove in a run with a groundout and Becca Geiyer (Grayslake, Ill./Warren Township) picked up an RBI with a bunt single. Then with two outs, Emmie Cibrario (Kenosha, Wis./Tremper) singled to left-center to walk-off the run-rule win.
 
Tkach scattered two hits, both infield singles, in the complete game shutout. She struck out four in the win and again faced just one over the minimum.
 
The Pointers will close out the regular season on Sunday (May 1) with a 1:00 p.m. doubleheader against UW-River Falls in Madison. The games were originally scheduled for Saturday in Stevens Point, but have been postponed and moved to Madison because of inclement weather in the forecast.