Maragos Magic Gives Cobbers Dramatic Walkoff Win

ST. PAUL, Minn. (4/24/22)---Landry Maragos will never forget her first collegiate home run. Maragos pinch hit in the bottom of the seventh inning with the Cobbers trailing 9-8 in their second game at St. Kate's, and proceeded to hit a dramatic 3-run, walkoff home run. The instant classic long ball  gave Concordia an 11-9 come-from-behind victory.

The win in Game 2 also helped Concordia earn their second straight road split of the weekend. After splitting a pair of games with Macalester on Saturday, CC dropped the opener on Sunday 11-1 – and needed a victory in the finale to get to .500 on the weekend.

The 3-run bottom of the seventh followed a 4-run top of the half by the Wildcats after they trailed 8-5. Concordia, who was the home team for the DH because the two games were originally scheduled to be played in Moorhead, put up a trio of runs in each of the fourth, sixth and seventh frames.

The first 3-spot helped the Cobbers tie the game at 4-4 after SCU had put up single runs in the second and third innings, and then two more in the fourth. Concordia grabbed a 5-4 lead in the bottom of the fifth when pinch runner Hailey Pangracs scored from third on an error.

St. Catherine (18-12, 11-5 MIAC) tied the game in the top of the sixth before CC put up the second 3-spot in the bottom of the frame. Kate Wensloff had an RBI single, and then Molly Wilde drove in a pair of runs with a double that gave the Cobbers an 8-5.

The Wildcats responded with four runs in the top of the seventh to take control of the game – and appeared to be headed for the sweep before Maragos' heroics.

Concordia (8-18, 2-10 MIAC) started the walkoff inning with an out. Valerie Kolstad doubled to center field to start the rally and then Kenzie Leither singled to set the stage for Maragos. Maragos pinch hit for Danielle Lyon and quickly got ahead in the count 2-0. Maragos, who only had one extra base hit in her previous 54 at-bats in 2022, took a strike and fouled a pitch off to bring the count even at 2-2. The left-handed batter then drove pitch over the center-field fence to give CC the improbable 11-9 win.

Both teams produced double-digit hits totals in Game 2. Concordia was outhit 13-11 but had four extra-base knocks as compared to only one for SCU.

The other big hit for the Cobbers in the second game belonged to Drew Syverson. She stepped into a pitch in the fourth inning and knocked it over the fence for a 3-run long ball of her own. Like Maragos, it was her first collegiate homer. The yard shot tied the game at 4-4.

Leither, Wensloff and Wilde had multiple-hit games in the finale for CC. Leither went 3-for-5 with two runs scored for the leadoff spot. Wensloff was 2-for-3 with an RBI, and Wilde was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI.

Megan Gavin pitched the second game for the Cobbers and struck out seven to record her seventh win of the season.

The first game was determined by three crooked-run innings for the Wildctas. They plated six runs in the second, two more in the fourth and finished it off with three in the fifth.

The Cobbers' lone run came in the fifth on a 1-out sacrifice fly from Hannah Wilke. CC had two hits in the opener. Wensloff had a 2-out double in the first and Gabriella Castro had a pinch-hit double in the fifth which led to Concordia's only run.

UP NEXT: Concordia will continue their stretch of 12 games in 10 days when they host St. Scholastica on Tuesday, Apr. 26 at 2 p.m.

LANDRY MARAGOS WALKOFF HOME RUN: