University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh Athletics

ST. LOUIS- Held scoreless on just one hit through six innings against a pitcher who had not lost all season, UW-Oshkosh rallied for a pair of runs in the top of the seventh frame to knock off Washington University in St. Louis, 2-1, during the winner's bracket final of the NCAA Division III Softball Championship St. Louis Regional at WashU Softball Field on Friday (May 15).
 
Oshkosh (32-8-1) opened the decisive top of the seventh inning with an Amanda Martineck (Frankfort, Ill./Lincoln-Way East) single – the Titans' second of the contest – that caromed off the WashU starting pitcher's torso and face mask on an 0-2 pitch. Autumn Freismuth (Fond du Lac/Fond du Lac) pinch ran for Martineck and reached second base safely ahead of the throw by the Bears third baseman on Emma Bohn's (Rosendale/Laconia) ensuing sacrifice bunt.
 
Down 1-0 with Titans at first and second bases and no outs, Morgan Miller (Schaumburg, Ill./Schaumburg) laid down a bunt to the pitcher's circle. Maria Brooks threw the ball well past the first baseman and down the right field line, allowing Freismuth to scamper home with the tying run and advance both Bohn and Miller into scoring position.
 
Haylie Wittman (Kaukauna/Kaukauna) then delivered what proved to be the winning run with a single down the left field line to plate Bohn for a 2-1 advantage. However, the Titans left a pair of runners aboard to set the stage for the home half of the last inning.
 
Grace Nardi (Marquette, Mich./Negaunee) entered the pitcher's circle in relief of Brianna Bougie (Oshkosh/Oshkosh West). After setting down the first two Bears on five pitches, WashU brought the potential winning run to the plate following a walk. Nardi proceeded to strike out the next WashU batter on four pitches to clinch the victory.
 
No. 2 seed Oshkosh awaits a pair of elimination games before being the home team in the St. Louis Regional final at 11 a.m. Saturday (May 16) at WashU Softball Field. An if necessary game would be played later Saturday should the Titans fall during the first regional final. The winner of the St. Louis Regional advances to a best-of-three-game super regional May 21-22.
 
No. 1 seed WashU (29-6-1), which fell to 21-2 at home on the year, along with No. 3 seed Illinois College (33-11) and No. 4 seed Capital University (Ohio) (21-18) will battle later Friday to earn the right to face the Titans on Saturday.
 
The Titans pulled out the stunning win despite being outhit, 7-3, as three Oshkosh pitchers combined to strand eight Bears baserunners.
 
WashU claimed a 1-0 advantage in the bottom of the third inning as Julia Sullo led off with a single, stole second base, reached third on a single and scored on a wild pitch with no outs. The Bears stranded a runner at third base during the frame following a pair of strikeouts and a flyout.
 
Oshkosh starting pitcher Kiran Sanford (Two Rivers/Mishicot), the 2026 WIAC Pitcher of the Year and National Fastpitch Coaches Association All-Region VIII First Team selection, held the potent Bears offense to one run across the first three innings before giving way to Bougie. Sanford allowed four hits and one walk with four strikeouts, including two vital punchouts to escape the third frame and keep the deficit at one run.
 
Bougie (6-4) earned the win in relief, tossing three scoreless innings on a mere three hits against a WashU squad that headed into the national tournament batting nearly .350, scoring more than six runs per contest and ranking 13th nationally at 3.41 stolen bases per game. Bougie, the 2025 WIAC Pitcher of the Year, struck out two without issuing a walk.
 
Nardi's save was her third of the year and fourth career.
 
A Mary Kate Quaid (Aurora, Ill./Oswego East) leadoff single in the top of the fourth inning represented Oshkosh's lone hit until its comeback during the seventh frame.
 
Sullo went 3-for-4 with three steals from atop the WashU lineup. She is now 48 of 50 on stolen base attempts this season.
 
Brooks (17-1) suffered her first defeat after going the distance in the Bears pitcher's circle, giving up two runs (one earned) on three hits and three walks with four strikeouts.
 
Oshkosh played errorfree once again en route to lowering its ERA to 1.40 on the year. The Titans, who went into the weekend fourth in the country in ERA, sport a .974 fielding percentage after committing zero errors for the second straight regional game and the 26th time overall this season.
 
The Titans entered the NCAA postseason ranked 15th in the country by the NFCA while WashU was seventh.
 
Oshkosh's Friday triumph marked its first win over WashU in three all-time meetings. The Bears downed the Titans during the regular season in both 2010 and 2011.