Photo by Sam Thiel Marshall’s Paige Andries connects for a base hit during game two of their doubleheader against St. Peter on Friday. The Tigers fell to the Saints 7-1 and 12-8.

MARSHALL – The Marshall softball team honored their seniors on Friday night, but the St. Peter Saints spoiled the festivities with a doubleheader sweep, earning a 7-1 victory in game one before holding off a late Tigers rally for a 12-8 win in game two.

In the opener, it was the Saints who jumped out to an early lead, as St. Peter got a one-out single before reaching on an error to score the game’s first run in the top of the opening inning. Marshall would get a leadoff walk from Abby Schauer in the bottom of the frame before Morgan Radel advanced her to second on a sacrifice to put a runner in scoring position, but the Tigers couldn’t capitalize and left the runner aboard after one inning of play.

The Saints got the next inning started with a bang with a solo homer to lead off the frame and give St. Peter a 2-0 lead.

The next couple of innings would go scoreless, as both team’s starters settled into their respective zones. St. Peter would then start the top of the fifth with a leadoff single before coming around to score on an infield single to make it 3-0. The Saints later got a single and would score on an error on a stolen base attempt to push their lead to 4-0.

Marshall would get on the board in the bottom half of the inning, getting a one-out single from Abby Wendorff before Wendorff advanced on a sacrifice bunt and a wild pitch to reach third base. Abby Schauer would step up and connect on an RBI single to cut the deficit to 4-1.

St. Peter would respond quickly, however, loading the bases on a pair of walks and an infield single before the Saints got a single that scored two runs and pushed their advantage to 6-1.

After Marshall went scoreless in the bottom of the sixth, St. Peter added another run in the seventh, getting on base on an error before coming around to score on an RBI single to bring it to the 7-1 final.

Abby Schauer led the way offensively for the Tigers with three hits and an RBI.

Madison Wegner took the loss in the circle, going all seven innings while allowing seven runs on eight hits and striking out seven.

St. Peter got out to another strong start in the nightcap, as the Saints loaded the bases in the top of the first to help plate five runs, highlighted by a two-run single and a pair of wild pitches.

The Saints continued their offensive output in the bottom of the second, with St. Peter getting a pair of singles to lead off the frame before it reached on an error that scored two runs to make it 7-0. St. Peter would then draw a walk before coming around to score on back-to-back passed balls to push its lead to 9-0.

Marshall wouldn’t go away, however, as Jamie Timmerman got a one-out single before Abby Schauer reached on an error and stole second to put runners in scoring position. But the Tigers couldn’t capitalize on the opportunity, getting a groundout and a strikeout to end the inning.

After a scoreless third, the Tigers would get out to a strong start to the top of the fourth. Shelby Versaevel would get things going with a one-out single before Katelyn Schauer and Paige Andries added back-to-back singles to load the bases. After a strikeout, Timmerman stepped up and delivered a two-run single down the left field line before Abby Schauer reached on an error to cut the deficit to 9-3.

St. Peter would respond quickly, though, using a leadoff single and an error to put runners on the corners before a wild pitch made it 10-3. The Saints followed that up with a pair of RBI singles to push their lead to 12-3.

Marshall wouldn’t go down without a fight, however, as Radel and Maddie Penske started the inning with back-to-back singles before Versaevel connected on an RBI single of her own. After a strikeout gave the Tigers two outs in the frame, Andries stepped up and got a base hit to plate two more runs before Wendorff reached on an error to bring in another run and cut the deficit to 12-7.

Marshall’s defense would hold St. Peter scoreless in the bottom of the fifth and got a pair of baserunners aboard to start the top of the sixth. Andries would then connect on a bloop single with two outs to bring in a run, cutting the Saints’ lead to four at 12-8.

The Tigers would hold St. Peter scoreless in the bottom of the sixth, giving Marshall one final chance to take tie or take the lead. But the Tigers went down in order and St. Peter went on to win 12-8.

Marshall coach Jack Houseman said it just wasn’t the night they were hoping for on all sides of the field.

“We needed to do a better job of pitch selection again and the defense struggled to make the outs we had,” Houseman said. “It wasn’t the night we were hoping for, but we got our bats going a little bit finally and put some runs on the board. We did come back, but we shouldn’t have been in that position in the first place.”

Andries and Timmerman led the way offensively in game two with three hits and three RBI apiece while Versaevel added a pair of hits and an RBI.

Karley Polejewski took the loss in the circle, going two innings while giving up nine runs on seven hits.

The Tigers honored their two seniors in between the games, with Polejewski and Radel being the only seniors for Marshall. Houseman said they’ve been a part of the program for a long time and have been extremely dedicated throughout their time in a Marshall uniform.

“They’ve been a part of our program for the past 10 or 11 years and have been playing softball since they were seven years old,” Houseman said. “They’re dedicated to the program and got to play some games here and I’m glad we got to get on these new fields and play some ball.”

Marshall (2-3) will face Pipestone Area on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m. in a doubleheader. Houseman said their biggest takeaway will be cleaning up some mistakes on defense as well as being more confident as a team at the plate.

“We’ve got a lot to work on with defense and we have to clean some of that up. I thought we did some nice pick plays and got out of some situations but we still need to clean up our backups and our defense,” Houseman said. “We’ve also just have to have a little more confidence at the plate; we need everybody confident and not just one or two hitters that rise to the occasion but the whole team.”

Game 1

St. Peter 7, Marshall 1

St. Peter 110 022 1 – 7 8 2

Marshall 000 010 0 – 1 5 3

Hitting: Marshall (A. Schauer 3 H, RBI).

Pitching (IP-R-ER-H-BB-SO): Marshall (Wegner 7-7-7-8-3-7).

Game 2

St. Peter 12, Marshall 8

Marshall 000 341 0 – 8 13 4

St. Peter 540 300 x – 12 13 4

Hitting: Marshall (Andries 3 H, 3 RBI; Timmerman 3 H, 3 RBI).

Pitching (IP-R-ER-H-BB-SO): Marshall (Karley Polejewski 2-9-9-7-2-0; Kayla Polejewski 3-3-3-5-1-1; Wegner 1-0-0-1-0-0).