UMC Golden Eagle News Archive:
June 6, 2006 - July 1, 2009

(St. Cloud, Minn.) – The University of Minnesota, Crookston Softball team traveled to St. Cloud, Minn. on Sunday, February 24 to take part in the Husky Dome Softball Classic. The Golden Eagles fell to Dakota State 8-2 in the first game and St. Cloud State 9-1 in the second game.

The Golden Eagles played a solid first game of the season until the fourth inning when a DSU pop fly hit the dome ceiling and fell for a single to spark a rally. Later in the top half of the fourth inning, UMC made a throwing error on another bizarre play to give Dakota State four unearned runs. In the sixth inning, the Golden Eagle started a rally when Tracy Nyhus (Jr, 2B, Almena, Wis.) and Shawna Steinbrink (Jr, 3B, Crookston, Minn.) hit back to back homeruns to cut the DSU lead to 6-2. Dakota State retaliated with two more runs in the top of the seventh inning to take the 8-2 victory. The Golden Eagle pitching rotation of Britney Winkelman (Jr, P, Foley, Minn.) and Steph Thomas (Fr, P, St. Albert, Alberta) threw an outstanding seven innings, giving up just two earned runs. Nyhus led the Golden Eagles at the plate, going 2-3 with a single and a homerun. She scored one run and drove in the other Golden Eagle score. Steinbrink finished the game going 2-4 with a single and homerun. She also scored once and drove in a run. Dakota State was led by Jamie Becker who went 3-3 and Emily Pyle who went 3-4 with three runs-batted-in.

St. Cloud State is no stranger to the Husky Dome. The team holds all of their practices there so they were accustomed to the quirks of the bubble dome. The Golden Eagles played solid defense behind the strong pitching of Steph Thomas. The Golden Eagles were down 3-1 after two innings but the Husky’s for six unanswered runs to take the game 9-1. Nyhus again led the Golden Eagles, going 2-3 at the plate. She went 4-6 (.667) on the day with a two singles, a double, a home run and an RBI. She slugged an outstanding 1.333 and had an on base percentage of .714. Defensively, she tallied two put-outs, five assists and had a fielding percentage of 1.000. Katie Bowar (Fr, 1B, Moorhead, Minn.) went 1-1 at the plate and drove in the Golden Eagle’s lone run. The Husky’s were led by Lizzy Dwyer who went 3-3 at the plate with one run scored and one RBI. Jenny Gensch went 1-1 with a two-run homerun for SCSU.

The Golden Eagles return to the field on March 15-16 when they play in Vermillion, S.D. at the Dakota State University Tournament. The team plays Minnesota, Morris on the 15^th at 4:00 p.m. and Dakota Wesleyan on the 16^th at noon. The results of those games will determine when the team plays again on the 16^th. All games will be played at the Dakota Dome in Vermillion.

For more information, visit the Golden Eagle Athletics website at www.goldeneaglesports.com.

The University of Minnesota, Crookston is a NCAA Division II Institution and a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC). Golden Eagle Hockey is a member of the Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association (MCHA). The Golden Eagle Equestrian team is a member of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA).