ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia-St. Paul softball team (24-27, 16-10 NSIC) celebrated Senior Day with a 4-0 and 5-3 sweep against Sioux Falls (S.D.) (21-27, 9-17 NSIC). Seniors Erica McCullough and Sydney Pelzer shined for the Golden Bears. 

Pelzer batted 4-5 on the day with a two-run homer in game two. She finished the day with three RBIs and scored twice. McCullough pitched a complete game in the game one victory while allowing a one-hit shutout. She also struck out a team-high two batters. 

Emily Knoblauch had one of the highlights of the day with a three-run homer in game two. This marked the first home run of the freshman's career as she came in to pinch hit in the fifth inning. 

Riley Rosenthal batted 3-5 on the day with an RBI in game two. Alexis Monty smacked a double in each game to help bat in two runs. Rachel Novak and Katie Klotz each added two hits. 

Emmy Bowne picked up the win in game two on the mound pitching six innings. She allowed eight hits and only one earned run. Tatum Dunlavy picked up her first career save in relief, getting the last three outs. 

With the wins, the Golden Bears remain undefeated at Carlander Field this season at 10-0. With two wins on Sunday, this would mark the team's first-ever unbeaten season at home. CSP has had three different seasons with one loss at home (2001, 2019 and 2022). The 10 home wins tie for the third-most in a season. 

CSP is now one game ahead of Minot State (27-22, 15-11 NSIC) in sixth place in the NSIC standings. The Golden Bears are two losses behind Minnesota Duluth (36-16, 16-8 NSIC) in fifth place. The Beavers and Bulldogs face each other in a doubleheader on Sunday. With a win on Sunday, the Golden Bears will avoid the play-in games of the 10-team NSIC Tournament. 

Concordia-St. Paul will attempt to finish the season unbeaten at home on Sunday against Wayne State (Neb.) (29-22, 13-12 NSIC). The Wildcats were swept by Winona State (39-13, 20-7 NSIC) on Saturday. First pitch is scheduled for noon at Carlander Field. 

Game One
Pelzer struck first in the opening inning with a two-run home run to left center. This marked the senior's 13th home run of the season, putting her at third all-time in a season in program history. Rosenthal singled up the middle in the at-bat before Pelzer. 

The Golden Bears added two more runs in the bottom of the fifth. After Lily Burke singled on a bunt, Alexis Monty doubled down the left-field line to bring Burke home. Pelzer then singled to left field, extending the lead to 4-0. 

Sioux Falls reached on two fielding errors with one out in the sixth inning. McCullough was able to get out of the inning quickly with a foul out to left field and a groundout to second base. The Cougars were able to get a runner on third in the seventh inning via an error, but CSP preserved the shutout again defensively. 

McCullough picked up her fifth win of the season in the complete-game shutout victory. She only allowed one hit and one walk while throwing two strikeouts. This marked the senior's first shutout of the season. 

Pelzer batted 2-3 with three RBIs. Monty tallied the only other extra-base hit for CSP with the RBI double. Novak had two hits and stole a team-high three bases. Rosenthal had two hits and scored a run. 

The Golden Bears outhit the Cougars, 9-1 while also committing the only three errors of the contest. CSP left three runners on base while Sioux Falls left four on base. 

Game Two
After 2.5 scoreless innings, the Golden Bears finally found paydirt in the bottom of the third. Burke walked to start the inning and stole second base. After that, Monty smacked her second double of the day to bring in the first run. Rosenthal followed with an RBI single up the middle for the 2-0 lead. 

Sioux Falls got on the board for the first time with a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning, cutting the lead to 2-1. The Golden Bears got some momentum going with Rosenthal and Pelzer reaching on back-to-back walks with two outs in the fifth inning. 

Knoblauch made the most of the opportunity, homering to left field and giving CSP a 5-1 advantage. This marked the first home run and first extra-base hit of the freshman's career. 

Sioux Falls added two runs on a two-out RBI triple by Savannah Isaacson and an RBI single by Hanna Soderbeck. Bowne was able to get the final out on a groundout to her, stranding runners on first and second. 

Dunlavy entered with a runner on first in the seventh inning. After allowing a single, Dunlavy got the lead runner out on a fielder's choice. CSP got the final two outs on an amazing double play getting outs at first base and a tag at home plate. 

Pelzer led the team batting 2-2 with two singles and a walk. Klotz batted 2-3 with two singles. Knoblauch tallied three RBIs on her home run. Monty and Rosenthal each had a hit, RBI and scored a run. 

Bowne improved her record to 9-10 on the season. She gave up one earned run on eight hits and two walks. Dunlavy picked up the save allowing one hit. This marked the first save by any CSP pitcher this season. 

Sioux Falls outhit Concordia 9-7. The Golden Bears committed the only two errors of the game. USF left seven runners on base while CSP left three.