BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Talk about a return! After missing 19 games due to injury, Wisconsin softball senior
Melanie Cross shined in her return to the starting lineup to lead the Badgers to a 7-4 victory over Iowa in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. UW's win Thursday afternoon secured them a spot in round two of the tournament where the No. 5 Badgers will matchup with No. 4 Ohio State.
Cross went three-for-three with a single, double and triple. She finished the day with three RBI and reached base in all four of her plate appearances.
After giving up a run in the top of the first, Wisconsin bounced back with three runs in the bottom of the frame for a 3-1 advantage. Sophomore
Lauren Foster sent the first run home in a perfectly executed squeeze play. Cross doubled in the next at-bat to score Foster and
Stephanie Lombardo before rain forced a one-hour delay.
Iowa tied the game in the top of the third but the Badgers had a quick response once again. Junior
Caroline Hedgcock singled to center field scoring base runners
Gabby Scherle and
Kelly Welsh. Another single from
Kayla Konwent later in the inning would score Hedgcock and give the Badgers a 6-3 lead.
Foster hit a leadoff double in the fourth inning to get on base and was sent home on Cross's single to cap of the scoring for the Badgers.
Freshman
Maddie Schwartz earned the win on the mound after pitching four innings in relief to improve her record to 4-0 on the season.
Batting clean-up: Four notes to know
- Cross and Konwent both tallied multi-hit games for UW with three and two hits, respectively.
- The Badgers turned two double plays in today's game for a rock solid defensive showing.
- In total, Wisconsin recorded four extra-base hits.
- UW swept the Hawkeyes this season, earning four-straight over Iowa for the first time in program history.
On deck
Tomorrow's second round game against the Buckeyes is scheduled for 10 a.m. (CT) and will air live on the Big Ten Network.
