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The women’s softball team finally got back on the field Saturday and came away with a split in a doubleheader on the road against St. Mary’s University (Minn.).

“After the ups and downs we had in California, I knew we’d come in with a solid performance,” coach Leslie Huntington said.

The Blugolds (5-7) used a dominant pitching performance from junior Kim Czapla and a big home run from junior outfielder Jannah Grinnell to propel them to a 1-0 victory in the first game.

St. Mary’s (8-4), the 2000 Div. III national champion, exploded for eight runs in the third inning of the nightcap en route to a 9-4 win.

The Blugolds managed only three hits in the first game, and Grinnell had two of them. Her blast in the bottom of the fifth was all Czapla (2-5) needed.

Czapla retired the first 10 St. Mary’s batters and stayed sharp throughout the contest. St. Mary’s continually pounded the ball into the ground and collected just four hits.

“I just let them put the ball in play,” Czapla said. “I know I’ve got a strong defense behind me.”

Eau Claire’s bats came to life in the second game. Unfortunately St. Mary’s offense also caught fire.

The Blugolds erased a 1-0 deficit by scoring four runs in the top of the third inning. The team got five straight hits and a sacrifice fly in the inning.

It didn’t take long for St. Mary’s to answer.

St. Mary’s sent 12 batters to the plate in the bottom of the third and scored eight runs on seven hits off junior hurler Jessie Sharpe.

The dagger in the Blugolds heart was a three-run home run from Nikki Lynch.

“(Sharpe) was throwing good pitches,” Grinnell said. “They were just hitting everything.”

The game was called after five innings because of darkness.

Sharpe (3-2) surrendered six earned runs in three and one-third innings of work.

The Blugolds registered eight hits in the game, with sophomore Emilee Planert and seniors Leah DeMares and Megan Grinnell getting two each.

The Blugolds were scheduled to host St. Mary’s on Sunday, but the games were moved to St. Mary’s because Gelein Field wasn’t ready.

Eau Claire opens its WIAC campaign Monday with a doubleheader at UW-Stout.

Stout lost its first two games of the season but fared well in its invitational tournament Saturday and Sunday.

Last season, the Blugolds split two games with the Blue Devils.

The clubs had similar records. Eau Claire went 3-5 in the WIAC West to finish just ahead of Stout, which went 2-6.

“They’ll be ready to go,” Huntington said. “We need to come out sharp and hopefully develop some rhythm offensively.”

The 2000 WIAC champions, the Blugolds, are scheduled to compete against Stout in a doubleheader rescheduled for Monday. The match up was originally planned for Wednesday, April 2 but was cancelled due to snowy weather.