Winona, Minn. – Augustana made its way to the championship game of NCAA Central Region #1 with a 2-1 win over No. 10 Winona State.  The Warriors advanced to the championship game as well as they rebounded from the loss to defeat Missouri Western State 5-4.  The two teams will play at 1 p.m. on Sunday for region #1 championship.  Winona State would have to defeat Augustana twice, while a single win for the Vikings would move them on.  

After Winona State scored a run in the bottom of the first, Augustana plated two runs in the top of the fourth, which proved enough for the win.  Lindsay Spanton, Emily Heinz, and Carley Pickett opened the fourth with three straight singles and Jordan Schaffer tied the game with a single to centerfield. Two pitches later, Maddie Merriam gave the Vikings the lead with a hard shot to center that scored Heinz.

In the Warriors win over MWSU, Jenny Nelson and Morgan Lintz hit back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to get the win.  With the game tied at three Nelson sent a pitch over the fence in right field to put the Warriors up late. The homer was her second go-ahead home run in the fifth inning or later in this NCAA postseason. Lintz followed with a home run to almost exactly the same spot, giving the Warriors an important insurance run.  Sunday’s game against Augustana will be a rematch of the NSIC Championship game, which Winona State won by defeating Augustana twice.  

Mankato, Minn. –  No. 11 Minnesota State saw their season come to an end as they lost to No. 18 Emporia State by the score of 3-2 in the NCAA Central Region #2 Tournament.  With the loss, MSU finishes its season with a 43-13 record.   The game was scoreless through five innings before Emporia State score a run in the top of the sixth and two in the seventh to open a 3-0 lead.  The Mavericks rallied in the bottom of the seventh to score two runs, but fell one short in their comeback attempt.

May 10, 2014	Mankato, Minn.	Emporia State 3, Minnesota State 2	Box score
May 10, 2014	Winona, Minn.	Winona State 5, Missouri Western 4	Box score
May 10, 2014	Winona, Minn.	Augustana 2, Winona State 1	Box score

#NSIC#