Behind senior pitcher Anna Fossand’s four-strikeout complete game and four-hit, two-RBI day at the plate, No. 1-seeded St. Agnes defeated No. 2-seeded Concordia Academy 9-1 in the Class 2A, Section 4 finals at Northwestern College on Tuesday.
Both teams will meet at 4 p.m. tomorrow on the same field to decide whose state tournament ticket gets punched.
If the Aggies plan on traveling to Caswell Park in Mankato, they'll need a similar outing they had against the Beacons, St. Agnes coach Dan Berthiaume said.
“We got bunts down and ran the bases well,” he said. “We forced Concordia to make some high-pressure plays, and it worked out in our favor.”
Reaching base on bunts was a recurring theme of the Aggies' offense on Tuesday. Berthiaume said they have the speed in the lineup to win races down the first base line, and Concordia Academy struggled adjusting to St. Agnes' wheels.
The Aggies spread out 12 total hits, allowing Fossand to stay aggressive in the circle. With the help of a couple diving catches in the field by the defense behind her, the left-handed senior guaranteed her team at least one more game.
Fossand went the distance and only allowed one earned run in the win, while Beacons freshman Taylor Brunn took the loss.
Brunn pitched until the fifth inning, when senior Becca Erdman came in for relief.
Despite Erdman not giving up any runs, Concordia Academy failed to get its bats rolling and couldn’t generate any run support after the first inning.
“(Fossand) is a solid pitcher," Beacons coach Gina Tupper said. “We also needed to get some of the nerves out, and as the game went on we got better."
