St. Bonifacius, MN -- The North Central University (NCU) Rams Softball team traveled to Crown College for this year's UMAC Crossover event where they would first battle the Knights of Martin Luther College (MLC), followed by a showdown with Bethany Lutheran College (BLC). This would be the first outing against both of these conference opponents for the Rams. North Central would struggle to produce hits in both games, leading to a 15-0 loss to MLC and an 8-0 loss to BLC.
 

Game 1 Recap:

Carla Mendoza would start game one on the mound for North Central. Errors would plague the Rams early, allowing MLC to put up 2 runs in the first inning. Mendoza would pitch a solid second inning allowing her defensive to make plays and retire the batters in a 1,2,3 manner. In the third inning, Martin Luther would get their bats going and the Blue and Gold would struggle to make plays. Six hits by the Knights would result in six more runs put on the board, making the score 8-0. In the top of the fourth, MLC would keep the bats hot scoring 6 more runs of 8 total hits. Going into the bottom of the fourth down 14-0, North Central would need to get things going at the plate. Sophomore Delaney Riddle would bomb a solo home run to score North Central's first and only run of the game. The Knights would tack on one more run in the fifth before securing the 15-1 victory over the Rams. 
 

Game 2 Recap:

Mendoza started game two also and it was more of the same for the Rams' offense. NCU would struggle to wake up the bats once again going 1,2,3 in the first two innings. On the other hand, they shored up their defense from game one, and would only give up 2 runs to Bethany through the first two innings. In the top of the third, freshman Katrina Diaz would get one of NCU's only hits in this game. In the bottom of the third, North Central's defense would hold strong and deny BLC from scoring any runs. With the score sitting at 2-0, the Vikings racked up 5 hits leading to 5 runs scored. and a 7-0 lead.  The Rams would not get another hit in the game and would be handed an 8-0 loss. 

Key Performer:

• Delaney Riddle (Lake Stevens, WA) would have 1 home run and two hits on the day

Looking Ahead:

NCU Softball will play two games tomorrow at Reynolds Field to wrap up the UMAC Crossover. They will first take on Northland College at noon, followed by UW-Superior at 2PM.
 

All fans are encouraged to tune into the official Rams Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter pages for all your up-to-date softball information and news.