FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Saint Francis University softball earned a comeback 6-3 victory in extra innings over Nebraska and closed out the day with a 6-4 loss to UNI.
 
WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
» Rachel Marsden (7-4) went 8.0 innings and allowed three runs (two earned) with three walks and two strikeouts to earn the victory over Nebraska.
» Aliya Garroway went 2-for-4 with a three-run double against Nebraska.
» Savannah Nash went 3-for-7 with two runs scored, one double and one RBI.
» Lexi Hernandez hit two RBI singles in the win over Nebraska.
» Grace Vesco (5-6) went 4.1 innings and allowed four runs (two earned) on three hits with four walks and six strikeouts in the loss to UNI.
 
TURNING POINTS OF GAME ONE
» Nebraska struck for the first run of the game in the first inning behind an RBI single for a 1-0 lead. The Huskers doubled their lead in the third inning with a run scored on a fielder's choice.
» Down 2-0, Saint Francis responded with two runs in the sixth inning behind an RBI double from Nash and RBI single from Hernandez.
» Nebraska had a leadoff triple in the bottom of the sixth, but Marsden retired the next three batters in order to keep the Huskers off the board.
» After a scoreless seventh, the game entered extra innings where the Red Flash struck for four runs. Hernandez hit an RBI single with the bases loaded for a 3-2 lead. Garroway capped off the scoring with a bases-loaded double that cleared the bases and opened a 6-2 lead.
» Nebraska produced one run in the bottom of the eight but Marsden shut down the Huskers after the run to clinch Saint Francis' first Power Five victory of the season.
 
TURNING POINTS OF GAME TWO
» UNI took a lead in the second inning on a one-run single and added to it with a run on a fielding error in the fourth for a 2-0 lead.
» The Panthers added three runs in the fifth inning behind an RBI single, fielder's choice and RBI infield single to open a 5-0 lead.
» Olivia Ulam got Saint Francis on the board in the sixth inning with a two-run home run to center field and cut the UNI lead to 5-2. UNI got one run back in the seventh on an RBI groundout and opened the lead back to 6-2.
» Saint Francis then loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the seventh and Lauren Aubry hit a two-run single and cut the deficit to 6-4.
» With runners on second and third down two runs, Saint Francis could not produce any more runs and fell to UNI 6-4.
 
FLASH NUGGETS
» Saint Francis has now defeated at least one Power Five opponent in five of the last six full seasons, excluding the shortened 2020 season. Saint Francis defeated Michigan State (2023), Syracuse (2021) Penn State (2019), Pitt (2019), Maryland (2018), Iowa State (2018) Penn State (2018) and Texas Tech (2017).
» Ashley Wruble recorded her 100th collegiate hit in the victory over Nebraska.
» Vesco eclipsed 650 strikeouts for her career and now stands at 653.

UP NEXT
Saint Francis concludes the Razorback Rumble on Sunday, March 10 for an 11 a.m. eastern time first pitch against South Alabama.