Wausau, WI – The Madison Night Mares took down the Wausau Ignite in the opening game of the Northwoods League Softball Championship Series on Monday night at Athletic Park.

The Ignite struck first in the opening inning. Gracie Konkol (University of St. Thomas) led off the frame with a base hit, and Riley Schwisow (Northwestern State University) drew a walk to put two runners on with nobody out. Mia Johnson (UW-Parkside) hit an RBI single to put Wausau on the board with the first run of the series.

The Night Mares left four runners on base over the first two innings, but didn’t miss out on their opportunity in the third inning. With two on, Ava Carroll (University of Washington) lined an RBI double to score both runners and give Madison a 2-1 lead. Later in the inning, Luciana Moreno (University of Pittsburgh) added a sacrifice fly to score Carroll and give the Night Mares a two-run cushion. 

Elena Krause (Stanford University) was strong in the circle for Madison. She recovered after the first inning run and fired four straight scoreless innings to keep the Night Mares in front. Carly Brewer (University of Iowa) took over in the seventh for the Night Mares and pitched a scoreless inning of relief to send the game to the seventh.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Ignite loaded the bases with just one out in the inning. Krause re-entered the game in the circle for Madison, and got Schwisow to ground into a game-ending double play, as Madison escaped with a 3-1 victory to take a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series.

Krause earned the win in the circle for the Night Mares with her stellar performance. Zoey Mills (Northwestern State University) pitched well, but took the loss for the Ignite.

The series returns to Madison for Game 2 on Wednesday night at Warner Park, with the Night Mares one win away from their second consecutive Northwoods League title. First pitch is set for 6:05 p.m.