MARQUETTE, Mich. - A walkoff loss was the only blemish for Marian University softball (3-1, 0-0 NACC) who finished the Finlandia Dome Classic with a 3-1 record.

Marian (8) at Finlandia (0)

The Sabres opened the classic against the host Finlandia Lions and it was a dominant pitching performance in the circle from senior Shannon Huray that gave the Sabres an easy victory.  

It wouldn't be until the third inning that Marian was able to strike when the Sabres were able to take advantage of a one-out Lion error.  Senior Tiffani Castillo reached on an error and fellow senior Charlotte Pegram followed with a single.  Both runners advanced off a wild pitch before sophomore Olivia Hartley drove in Castillo with a ground out.

After a quiet fourth inning, the Sabres put together a five-run fifth to extend on their lead.  The inning started with three consecutive singles to load the bases before freshman Gianna Esposito drove in Castillo with a single.  Senior Sara Terrian then stepped in with a double to center field to drive in a pair that forced a Finlandia pitching change.  Senior Nicole LaBeck then followed a ground out with a two-RBI single to cap off the scoring for the inning.

Marian tacked on a pair in the seventh with freshman Taylor Lauscher driving in an unearned run with a double and sophomore Rachel Soch bringing in Lauscher with a sacrifice fly to set the final at 8-0.

All nine Sabre starters recorded a hit in the win with Terrian going 2-3 with two runs batted in, a walk and a run scored.

Huray went the distance only allowing three hits with six strikeouts to open her season 1-0.

Marian (12) at UW-Stevens Point (13)

Both offenses came to play in the second game of the day against UW-Stevens Point but it was the Pointers who were able to score three runs in the bottom of the seventh for a 13-12 walkoff win.

Marian started the game strong jumping out to four runs in the first two innings.  LaBeck would draw a bases loaded walk and Soch drove in a pair off a double in the first inning to highlight the quick start.

The Pointers responded, however, with a run in the second and four runs in the third to take a 5-4 lead.  The Sabres answered in the top half of the fourth when Terrian drove in Pegram with a ground out to tie the game at 5-5, though.  UWSP would retake the lead with a pair of runs in the bottom half of the inning before the Sabres exploded for six runs in the top half of the fifth.

With one out and runners on second and third Marian would have their next four hitters reach with Pegram, Hartley, Esposito, Terrian and Lauscher all driving in runs for the inning.  The Sabres managed to bat around in the inning and took an 11-7 lead with the offensive outburst.

UWSP was able to chip away at the Sabre lead with a three-spot in the bottom of the sixth putting the score at 11-10 heading into the seventh.

The top half of the inning saw Lauscher smack a big double that drove in Pegram to provide Marian some insurance, but the Pointers were able to rally in the bottom half of the inning for three runs to defeat Marian 13-12.

The first seven hitters in the Sabre offense drove in runs led by Hartley who went 5-5 with a run scored and run driven in.

Freshmen Paige Rauhut and Paige Michaelson each logged their first innings of their respective Sabre careers with Huray (1-1) taking the loss.

UW-Superior (0) at Marian (8)

Marian opened the second day of the Finlandia Dome Classic in a big way mercy-ruling UW-Superior.

The Sabres jumped out fast with three runs in the first inning as Terrian drove in a run and Lauscher drove in a pair.  Marian added to their lead when Terrian drove in another pair of runs in the bottom of the third with a single to right center before a three-run bottom of the sixth ended the game.  Espositio provided the knock-out punch with a two-RBI single that scored Pegram and Soch.

Esposito and Pegram each recorded three hits in the win, while Terrian drove in three runs.

Huray (2-1) was once again brilliant on the mound with another three-hit shutout only walking one batter.

Northland (1) at Marian (2)

The final game of the Finlandia Dome Classic saw the Sabre offense struggle for the first time, but MU was able to defeat Northland 2-1 in a pitcher's duel.

Neither team was able to score an earned run in the game, but it was Pegram who opened the scoring with a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the third to bring in LaBeck.  The LumberJills responed in the fifth inning with a sacrifice fly of their own to tie the game at 1-1.

The bottom half of the inning saw Esposito come up clutch once again, however, as a single up the middle with the bases loaded drove in Soch to give Marian a 2-1 lead for good.

Esposito was the only Sabre to record multiple hits in the win, while freshman Courtney Makinen provided Marian a pinch-hit single.

In her first carer start, freshman Paige Rauhut (1-0) shut down the Jills going 5.0 innings allowing only three hits with three strikeouts.  Huray came in to earn her first save of the season only allowing one hit in the final two innings.

Marian takes a week off before heading to Fort Myers, Fla. for the Gene Cusic Classic March 13-18.

--FightBlueFight--