University of Rio Grande announces IU Southeast deals Rio season-ending loss

SOUTH CHARLESTON, W.Va. - There's an oft-used adage that says "some days you get the bear and, some days, the bear gets you".
     On Saturday morning, with its season hanging in the balance, the University of Rio Grande found itself on the wrong end of its clash with the carnivore.
     Indiana University Southeast's Madison Wathen limited the top hitting team in the River States Conference to just two hits and her teammates did all of their offensive damage in one big inning en route to a 6-0 victory over the RedStorm in the loser's bracket final of the 2023 RSC Softball Championship at Little Creek Park.
     The Grenadiers, the West Division No. 1 seed and the tourney's overall top seed, improved to 33-16 with the win and earned a spot opposite of St. Mary-of-the-Woods College in the tournament title game.
     Rio Grande, the league's East Division champion and the No. 2 seed overall in the six-team, double-elimination tournament, finished its season at 35-16.
     The loss also kept the RedStorm from reaching the NAIA National Tournament Opening Round for the first time in head coach Chris Hammond's eight-year tenure - excluding the 2020 season when COVID-19 canceled the national championship - and halted the program's streak of consecutive national tournament appearances dating back to 2015.
     Wathen, who allowed eight hits and six runs in a regular season win over Rio on April 7, walked none and struck out nine.
     After allowing a one-out first inning single to freshman Kayla Sedgwick (Richwood, OH), Wathen retired 17 consecutive batters - a streak that was snapped by the RedStorm's second hit, a leadoff single by Sedgwick in the seventh inning.
     Wathen was locked in a pitching duel with Rio Grande junior starter Sydney Campolo (New Lexington, OH) through the first three frames until the Grenadiers exploded in the top of the fourth, parlaying four hits, an error and a hit batter into six runs. The error resulted in five of the six runs being unearned.
     Erin Templeman opened the inning with ground-rule double to left center and Macie Zink followed with a bunt single which moved pinch-runner Alaina Winzeler to third.
     Katie Templeman then hit a dribbler to the third base side of the circle which Campolo fielded cleanly, but her throw to first was in the dirt for an error and Winzeler scored to make it 1-0.
     Each of the next two batters were retired routinely, but Issy Wright drew a walk to load the bases and Kendall Brown was hit by a pitch to force home Zink with the second run of the inning.
     Oehlstrom then followed with a two-run single to left to make it 4-0 and, after a pitching change, Cassi Roman greeted junior reliever Kali Brickman (Huber Heights, OH) with a two-run single to left-center to cap the uprising.
     Brickman pitched well in relief, allowing four hits over 3-1/3 scoreless innings, but Rio Grande's lack of offense kept the RedStorm from finding any traction.
     Any hopes of miraculous comeback after Sedgwick's leadoff single in the seventh were quickly short-circuited, though, when junior Caitlyn Brisker (Oak Hill, OH) forced Sedgwick with a fielder's choice grounder to second and Adams was robbed of extra bases by Oehlstrom on a running catch in right field, with Brisker doubled-up trying to get back to first base on the same play for the final out.
     Oehlstrom, Roman and Wright all had two hits for IU Southeast.
     Campolo took the loss for Rio Grande, surrendering four hits, three walks and the six runs - only one of which was earned - over 3-2/3 innings.
     Saturday's game marked the final collegiate contest for senior Christen Risner (Wheelersburg, OH) and junior Cierra Clark (Plain City, OH). 

Original source can be found here.