SIOUX CENTER, Iowa — Dakota Wesleyan Tigers softball saw its once-red-hot season hit another bump Thursday, dropping both ends of a doubleheader to Dordt Defenders softball at the ASB Dome.
The Tigers, who recently set a program record with a 15-game winning streak, have now lost three straight contests. Dakota Wesleyan University falls to 33-14 overall and 16-4 in the GPAC, slipping from first place into a tie for third with Dordt University. Meanwhile, Morningside University and Midland University share the conference lead at 15-3.
Dordt claimed the opener 6-1 behind a dominant performance from pitcher Rylee Yager, who struck out 13 and allowed just four hits in a complete game. Dakota Wesleyan’s lone run came in the second inning when Alessandra Ciurca tripled to drive in Jordyn Blogg for a 1-0 lead.
The Defenders responded in the fourth, capitalizing on a Tiger error to take a 2-1 advantage. Dordt broke the game open in the fifth inning, stringing together four runs on RBI hits from Chloe Kreuz, Yager and Lauren Steenstra.
In the nightcap, Dordt’s offense stayed hot in an 11-3 win. Kreuz led the surge with two home runs and six RBIs, while Annabelle Hensley also homered. The Defenders scored four runs in the third inning to take control and never looked back.
Dakota Wesleyan showed brief momentum in the fourth inning, trimming the deficit to 4-3 on RBI hits from Blogg and Kassidy Lopez. Dordt quickly answered with two runs in the bottom half and added five more over the final two innings to seal the sweep.
Blogg paced the Tigers offensively in Game 2 with two hits and two RBIs, while Jaycee Tebay and Ciurca each contributed hits.
Dakota Wesleyan closes the regular season Saturday with a road doubleheader against Morningside, with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. The matchup could play a key role in determining final GPAC tournament seeding.