Winona State University softball team’s Head Coach, Greg Jones, earned his 1000th win on Saturday, April 26. The Warriors faced Wayne State College for two matches that day. They won the first with 6-5 runs and the second with 2-1 runs.
“It’s a big number,” Jones had said after the win. “That means maybe I have been here a while!”
The first match began at 1:00 pm. The Warriors had a good start with three runs on board while Wayne State could not keep up with their momentum, with zero runs in the first two innings.
Wayne State opened their scorecard by scoring just one run in the third inning. The Warriors attempted to tack a few more runs into their score, but they had to keep level heads with players on third base.
After a slow third inning, the Warriors achieved further success in the fourth. They scored another run and boosted the score to 4-1.
Wayne State was trying to make a comeback. Their motivated plays did not land in the fifth inning, but in the sixth, their luck turned with four runs tacked onto their scoreboard. Wayne State player Hayley Murphy scored a home run in this set. This home run became a game changer for them, and it felt as though they were beginning to change the tide of the game.
Winona State could not score any runs in the sixth inning, but they also managed to restrict Wayne State from scoring in the seventh.
By scoring two runs in the last inning of the match, Winona State secured its first victory of the day. Warrior Bryn Elsenpeter scored a home run for the team as well. The Warriors achieved eight total hits as a team. On the other hand, Wayne State had eleven hits as a team.
The second match of the day carried a lot of emotion for the Warriors as their head coach had the opportunity to earn his 1000th win. Though it was low scoring, there were plenty of thrills in this match.
In the first inning, neither team could score a single run. However, the Warriors managed to score one in the second inning.
The teams remained tight with their pitching tactics and left no room for the opposition to score throughout the match. The third and the fourth innings went without scoring any runs from either team.
The Warriors again found their momentum in the fifth set in which they scored one run there. Wayne State could not score a single run till the fifth set. This led the score to 2-1, with the Warriors in the lead.
Winona State pitcher Izzy Howe was having a clean sweep until the sixth inning. After a run was scored by Wayne State, Jones switched their pitcher for Jayda Berg.
This change of pitchers worked in the Warriors’ favor, and Wayne State was unable to score any runs. The Warriors did not have to play the last set as they were up in score, and the match ended at 2-1 runs.
After the match, the Warriors celebrated their head coach’s 1000th win. Winona State President, Dr. Kenneth Janz, and Vice President, Jon Olson, were also present at this celebration.
“We have a family atmosphere and just such a good culture that gets us so excited for each other,” Elsenpeter said.
Winona State has already qualified for the NSIC league matches, all of which will be played in Sioux Falls, SD.
