Sophomore Paige Sandahl struck out 11 batters on her way to a three-hit shutout to lead St. Edward’s to a 1-0 victory over Incarnate Word Saturday afternoon at Cardinal Field. The victory clinched the regular season conference championship, for St. Edward’s for the second-consecutive season.
Incarnate Word (26-22, 14-6 HC) started the game with two-straight singles. However, the Cardinals were unsuccessful in three-straight at-bats and were unable to score.
In the second inning, St. Edward’s (32-19, 16-4 HC) got a leadoff walk from Courtney Lavender (Junior, Houston, Texas) but she was left stranded as the final two batters were retired via the strikeout.
The Hilltoppers were able to break up the shutout in the fifth inning, when Lexi Stephens (Junior, Baytown, Texas) came up with a huge two-out RBI to plate the only run of the ballgame.
Sandahl (Sophomore, Dripping Springs, Texas) took over from there, nine of the final 11 batters. Five of those batters struck out as Sandahl ended with just three hits allowed, two walks, and 11 punch outs.
St. Edward’s finishes the regular season just one-half game ahead of St. Mary’s in the Heartland Conference standings. Since 2006, the Hilltoppers have won four of the five conference titles.
St. Edward’s will be back in action Thursday when they take part in the Heartland Conference Tournament. The Hilltoppers will host the three-day tournament at Diane Daniels Field. Live audio will be available on the Hilltopper Athletic Website.