RIVER FALLS, Wis. — The UW-River Falls softball team concluded its 2026 season on Tuesday afternoon at Perkins Stadium with a pair of losses in a non-conference doubleheader against Carleton College.
Carleton 7, UW-River Falls 6
In game one, UWRF trimmed a multi-run deficit to one but could not complete the comeback in the one-run loss.
Carleton jumped out early with two runs in the first and added four more in the third to build a 6-1 lead. The Falcons responded throughout the middle innings, scoring two in the fourth and two more in the fifth to pull within 7-5.
Amanda Holzhueter and Addi DeMeyer each drove in runs in the fourth, while Caitlyn Kressel and Abby Pitts delivered RBI hits in the fifth. UWRF added one more in the sixth on an RBI groundout by Lacie Lilyquist to make it 7-6.
The Falcons threatened in the seventh as Kressel recorded her third hit of the game, but Carleton turned a game-ending double play to secure the win.
Kressel led the Falcons at the plate, going 3-for-4 with an RBI. Pitts added two hits and an RBI, while Hannah Effertz finished with two hits and a run driven in.
Lucy Knutson started in the circle and tallied five strikeouts in five innings pitched.
Carleton 8, UW-River Falls 4
The Knights used a decisive five-run fifth inning to pull away from the Falcons in game two.
Down 2-0 early, the Falcons responded in the second when Lacie Lilyquist hit a home run and Grace Gardner tripled to tie the game at 2-2 after two innings.
Carleton regained the lead in teh fourth, then broke the game open in the fifth, scoring four runs off fifth hits to extend its lead to 7-2.
UWRF chipped away late. Pinch hitter Alexa Dusterhoft hit her first career homer in the sixth, and the Falcons added another in the seventh on an RBI groundout by Lilyquist, but Carleton maintained control down the stretch. An unearned run in the seventh pushed the Knights' lead back to four.
Rachel Block earned the win in relief for Carleton, allowing one run over 2.2 innings pitched. Hailey Kincaid took the loss for UWRF after giving up seven runs in 4.1 innings.
Lilyquist led the Falcons with two RBI while Gardner went 2-for-3.
