MEQUON, Wis. – The Concordia Wisconsin softball team is back on top of the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference after a Sunday sweep of Concordia Chicago. The Falcons finish conference play tied for first place with Dominican at 19-5, with the Falcons holding the seeding tiebreaker with the victories over Concordia Chicago. The Falcons brought out the brooms with a 7-1, 9-1 sweep of Concordia Chicago.
"I am incredibly proud of this team," said head coach Megan Aliverti. "This title means a lot to us. This is a testament to all of our hard work and dedication that we have put into our practices, in the gym, and in the classroom. We came into the day knowing that we had the chance to be champions, we played for each other, stayed within ourselves, and we finished the job."
Concordia Chicago propped the door open for the Falcons on Saturday after the Cougars swept Dominican, to put the Falcons within striking distance.
The Falcons were the first team onto the scoreboard on Sunday with a run in the first inning.
Senior Jess Pozezinski (Lake Villa, Ill.) started the day with a single to left field, and after sophomore Jenna Shadoski (Janesville, Wis.) singled to center field, senior Megan Bloyer (Oregon, Wis.) blasted the ball to center field on a single that scored Jess Pozezinski from second base.
The Cougars tied the game in the second inning with a home run.
Junior Rylie DuVal (Elgin, Ill.) broke the tie in the third inning with a deep shot to left field that scored senior KianaMarie Taccad (Chicago, Ill.) on a sacrifice fly.
The Cougars tried to get the ball rolling in the fourth inning, but junior Julia Moker (Hubertus, Wis.) showed off her cannon from right field and had a double play to end the threat. Moker also had her first hit of the season and her first career double in the game with a blast to left field.
Rylie DuVal struck again in the fifth inning with a single up the middle of the infield that cleared Megan Bloyer and sophomore Kaitlyn Way (Blaine, Minn.).
CUW added three more runs in the sixth inning to add some padding to the lead.
Megan Bloyer was walked with the bases loaded to allow junior Nora Statz (Helenville, Wis.) to cross home plate safely.
Rylie DuVal continued terrorizing the cats with another single to center field, this time scoring Jess Pozezinski and Jenna Shadoski.
Sophomore Emma Shellstrom (San Diego, Calif.) showcased why she is the best pitcher in the conference on Sunday and only allowed four hits in the 12th victory of the season, and had no walks and two strikeouts.
Rylie DuVal had a career-best five RBI in the first game.
Megan Bloyer was a perfect three-for-three at the plate.
The game-one victory secured a double bye for the Falcons in the NACC Tournament, but they wanted more.
The Cougars struck first with a home run to center field, with the wind blowing out in the second inning.
The Falcons responded with back-to-back home runs in the bottom of the inning.
Senior Jasmine Freeze (Bolingbrook, Ill.) had a shot over the fence in left field, and then sophomore Jenna Lischka (Manitowoc, Wis.) smashed a no-doubt blast to center field for her first collegiate home run.
The Birds showed off their speed in the third inning when Kaitlyn Way had her first career triple down the left-field line. Jenna Shadoski scored all the way from first base on the play.
The Blue and White brought in three more runs in the fourth inning.
Junior Maggie Plahmer (Slinger, Wis.) had her first collegiate home run with a ball smacked to left-center field.
The Falcons then executed a flawless double steal with Jess Pozezinski pulling the defense and KianaMarie Taccad sneaking home, and Pozezinski staying safe.
Pozezinski scored later in the inning when Kaitlyn Way clapped a double into the gap in left-center field.
The Falcons activated the run rule with three runs in the fifth inning.
Jasmine Freeze sent her second ball over the left-field fence to start the scoring.
Jenna Shadoski then beat out a single to second base with two outs, and Jenna Lischka and Jess Pozezinski snuck across home plate to win the game. Jess Pozezinski reached on a double that broke the program for doubles in a single season.
Jasmine Freeze left the Cougar bats ice cold on Sunday and held CUC to four hits and had four strikeouts in her eighth win of the season.
Jenna Shadoski was a perfect four-for-four at the plate in game two, while Kaitlyn Way and Jasmine Freeze were three-for-three.
The Falcons did not commit an error on the day.
Concordia Wisconsin finishes the regular season with a 28-10 record.
This is the sixth regular-season title for the Falcons and the fifth title in the last six possible seasons. CUW claimed the Lake Michigan Conference title in 2002. The NACC crown has gone to CUW in 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, and now 2025. COVID-19 halted the 2020 season.
The Falcons are the top-seeded team in the NACC Tournament with the tiebreaker over Dominican and will play at 4:00 on Friday at Aurora.
