FOREST CITY, Iowa – Winona State University's Jordyn Kleman may not have been perfect on Sunday afternoon against Minnesota Crookston, but the junior right-hander was unhittable. Kleman struck out 11 Golden Eagles without allowing a hit and etched her named into the program annals for a record-breaking sixth time.
The La Crosse, Wisconsin native has now thrown more no hitters than any other player to ever wear a Warrior jersey and has accounted for nearly a quarter of the no-hit performances in program history (26).
After a 3-0 WSU victory in the opening affair, hits didn't come any easier for the Golden Eagles in game two as Liz Pautz two-hit Crookston over four innings before Alyssa Van Valey tossed a perfect final frame in a 12-0 run-ruled triumph.
No. 17 Winona State (31-5, 16-0 NSIC) has now won 16 straight ballgames after the sweep of Crookston.
Kleman's last no-hitter was a five-inning perfect game on April 28, 2018, but Sunday's milestone didn't come quite as easily. The veteran hurler issued four walks and hit three Golden Eagle batters, but successfully navigated each jam as the two teams were locked in a scoreless battle through five innings.
Crookston's best scoring opportunity came in the bottom of the third frame after Kleman hit back-to-back batters with one out. Following a strikeout, Kleman walked the next batter to load the bases before doing what she does best – producing an inning-ending punchout.
The stalemate continued into the sixth inning when WSU decided to play small ball in hopes of manufacturing the first run of the cool but sunny afternoon. Following a leadoff single by Lani Van Zyl, head coach Greg Jones called upon the Warriors' slugging cleanup hitter, Alison Nowak, to lay down a sacrifice bunt. The sacrifice was successful, but ultimately proved unnecessary, much to the delight of the Warriors, as Alexis Kelsey blistered an 0-2 pitch out of the park on a screaming line drive to center field for a 2-0 lead.
The Warriors flashed some leather in the bottom of the seventh as the Golden Eagles looked to spoil the no-hit bid. Kayla Kerkman chased down the hardest hit ball of the day in the right-center field gap to rob a hit and Ann Smolenski recorded an out on a bang-bang play when Crookston dropped a bunt to the third baseman.
Kleman (16-1) blew her last pitch of the day past the UMC batter for one final strikeout to record her league-leading 16th win of the year in her 13th complete game effort.
The Warrior bats did not sit around idly for long in the finale, exploding for four runs in the second frame and hanging a crooked number on Crookston in each of the final three innings.
With the bases loaded and one out in the top of the second, Carly Kordich broke the scoring seal with an RBI-single and officially opened the flood gates. Katie Kolb added a sac fly and Van Zyl capped the four-run frame with an RBI-double to left-center field.
Kordich recorded her second RBI of the day when the sophomore was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the third inning ahead of a bases-loaded walk by Kolb to force in another run. An RBI-double by Rylee Stout in the fourth resulted in two runs scoring thanks to a Golden Eagle throwing error.
After a rare hitless tilt in game one, Nowak was rewarded for her selflessness and flexed her muscles with her NSIC-leading 10th home run in game two. The junior's three-run blast to left-center field accounted for the final runs of the day in a 12-0 rout.
On the mound, Pautz (11-2) scattered a pair of hits over 4.0 IP while striking out nine batters and lowering her league-leading ERA to 0.68.
The Warriors return to the diamond in Forest City on Monday afternoon for a doubleheader against Bemidji State University beginning at 12 p.m.
