OAK CREEK, Wis. – The Alverno College softball team opened Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) play on Saturday afternoon, falling in both ends of a doubleheader to Marian at MATC Field.

Sophomore Nadya Hudson (Milwaukee, Wis./Wauwatosa East) continued her strong start to the season, picking up two hits in game one and one in game two, while senior Hailie Eschbach (Kenosha, Wis./Tremper) also had three hits over the doubleheader. Hudson also drove in a run, while both recorded doubles.

Alverno falls to 0-12 (0-2 NACC) with the losses, while Marian improved to 5-7 (2-0 NACC) with the wins. The Inferno's originally scheduled game against North Park on Sunday, March 22, has been cancelled; they will next play on Saturday, March 28, at Edgewood.

Game One: Marian 17, Alverno 5 (5 innings)
Marian used an 11-run third to lead them to the game one win, earning their first conference win of the season.

Hudson was 2-3 in the loss, scoring a run, driving in a run, and registering a double, while sophomore Gianna Medrano (Tucson, Ariz./Ironwood Ridge) had an RBI double and scored a run, and junior Jaycee Reyes (Tucson, Ariz./Ironwood Ridge) also drove in a run and scored once. Sophomore Riley Krider (Cromwell, Ind./West Noble) took the loss with 2.1 innings of work, while fellow sophomore Cece Ehni (Snohomish, Wash./Monroe) went the final 2.2 innings.

After Marian took an early 4-0 lead in the second inning, Alverno answered right back with a three-run frame in the bottom half. Hudson jump-started the rally with a double, while the Inferno capitalized on defensive miscues to bring runs across. Reyes registered an RBI on a sacrifice bunt, while Eschbach forced in a run by reaching an error to put the Inferno down a run.

Marian responded with a big third inning to pull away, but the Inferno continued to battle late into the game.

In the fifth, Medrano delivered an RBI double, and Hudson followed with an RBI single to account for the final runs of the game.

Sabrina Di Vito earned her first win of the season for the Sabres with four strong innings, while Ariana Schliepp led the offense with two hits, three runs scored, three runs driven in, and two doubles.

Game Two: Marian 13, Alverno 0 (5 innings)
In game two, Marian used a pair of big innings to secure the sweep, but Alverno was able to put runners on throughout and threaten in several innings.

The Inferno recorded five hits in the contest, led by Eschbach, who finished with two hits, including a double. Freshman Mac Gardner (Eagle Lake First Nation, Ontario/College Churchill), senior Emily Anguiano (South El Monte, Calif./San Gabriel Mission), and Hudson also had hits for the Alverno offense. Ehni took the loss in the circle, going all five innings for her first career complete game.

Marian pushed single runs across in their first two at-bats and used a five-run third inning to build a strong cushion over the Inferno. After a 1-2-3 fourth from Ehni, the Inferno put two runners on in the bottom of the frame, but were unable to push any runs across.

A long top of the fifth saw the Sabres add six more runs, and despite two, two-out singles, they held on for the shutout victory in the fifth for the doubleheader sweep.

Savanna Knuth went four shutout innings to earn the victory of Marian, while Hope Matta and Schliepp led the offensive effort. Matta drove in two and scored twice with three hits, while Schliepp had four RBI in the victory.