The Falcon softball team won the WIAC Tournament Championship with a 5-4 win over Eau Claire on Sunday afternoon at Ramer Field.

The Falcons, now 26-13 overall, won the game in dramatic fashion scoring three runs in the seventh inning to erase a 4-2 UWEC lead. 

UWRF was the only team to go through the two day double elimination tourney without a loss. They opened with a 4-1 win over Oshkosh, then beat No. 8 ranked Whitewater, 5-2, then topped No. 22 ranked La Crosse, 2-1 before beating Eau Claire.

With the win the Falcons earned the WIAC's automatic berth into the NCAA Championship series. The Falcons will find out Monday morning which regional they will be placed in and which team they play in their first game. The NCAA announcement will be available on-line at this site at 11 a.m., on Monday.

This is the first time since 1994 that the Falcons have qualified for the NCAA Championships. UWRF appeared in the 1993 and 1994 Championship series.

In the win over Eau Claire the Falcons scored five runs on six hits and made one error. UWEC scored four runs on five hits and made no errors. Eau Claire scored single runs in the fist and third and two in the fifth, to take a 4-2 lead at the time. The Falcons scored single runs in the fourth and fifth and three runs on the top of the seventh. 

With EC leading, 2-0, the Falcons got to within one run in the fourth. Hayley Buchanan (Eden Prairie, MN, Eden Prairie) led off with a single to right and Ashley Goettl (North Mankato, MN, West) doubled to left center to score Buchanan. The Falcons tied the game with a run in the fifth. Shawna Middleton (Hastings, MN, Hastings) led off with a single to left and Lily Buckley (Menomonie, Menomonie) ran for her. Dana Book (Brooklyn Center, MN, Champlin Park) sacrificed Buckley to second. Patty Olson (Roseville, MN, Roseville) then came up with a big hit. She grounded a single to center and the speedy Buckley scored on the play to tie the game, 2-2.

But the Blugolds grabbed the lead right back in their half of the fifth. They scored twice on just one hit and left two runners on first and third.

The Falcons then put together one of their biggest innings of the season in the seventh. 

With out out, Middleton walked and Haley Selkirk (Northfield, MN, Northfield) ran for her. Book walked to put runners on first and second. Both runners advanced a base on a passed ball. Olson worked a walk out of the EC pitcher to load the bases with one out.

Jamie Klein (Elk River, MN, Elk River) pinch hit and she delivered a huge line drive single to right that scored Selkirk and Book. UWEC then changed pitchers, but the Falcons were done yet. After a fly out that advanced Sarah Bohlen (Rochester, MN, Mayo), who was running for Olson, from second to third, Goettl walked to load the bases. Amanda Ryder (Menomonie, WI, Menomonie) was hit by the first pitch she faced and that forced in Bohlen with what proved to be the game winning run. 

UWEC threatened in the seventh putting runners on second and third with two outs before the Falcons were able to end the inning.

Rose Tusa (Roseville, MN, St. Anthony Village) had another strong performance on the mound for the Falcons. She went the distance and allowed five hits and four runs, three were earned. She struck out five and walked four. The junior pitched every inning - 28 in all - for the Falcons in the tournament. She improved to 19-6 and the 19 wins is a school record for pitching wins in a season. She also tied the season strikeouts school record. With the five she got against UWEC, she has 217 this year. She is tied with Ashley Bertrand, who struck out 217 in 2008. 

Olson finished 2-3 in the game with one RBI. Klein was 1-1 with two RBI. Goettl was 1-3 with one RBI and Ryder had the other RBI. 

Box Score