Amber Abts had three hits, while Leslie Kllinski drove in two runs to help the Luther High School summer softball team to a 5-4 win over De Soto in the third-place game of Saturday's eight-team De Soto tournament.
Brittany Vanderzee had the game-winning hit in the third-place game, a two-out single that drove in Emily Snider. But De Soto threatened in its half of the inning, getting its leadoff runner to third with nobody out under the international tiebreaker after a stolen base. Luther's Amy Dobrunz got out of the jam, however, inducing a pop up to second baseman Kaitlin Zimmer, a strikeout and a ground ball to Vanderzee at first to end the game.
Luther rallied from a 4-1 deficit through two innings to take a 5-4 lead in the fourth. Luther got consecutive hits from Zillmer, Abts, Klinski and Kelsey Gerke in a three-run third that created a 4-4 tie.
Starter Alesha Wahl kept her team in the game. She allowed seven hits and four earned runs, but just one walk over the first five innings. Dobrunz pitched a perfect final three innings, including five strikeouts.
Luther opened the tournament with a 5-4 win over Logan. Luther scored four times in the top of the second, including singles from Abts and Dobrunz, then held on Logan left the tying runs in scoring position in the fourth with nobody out and the winning runs in scoring position with nobody in the sixth.
Luther began the pitching pattern they followed in the third-place game against Logan. Wahl kept Luther in the game by allowing two earned runs over the first five innings. Dobrunz countered the back-to-back walks to begin the sixth with a strikeout, in the process earning a save.
In between, Luther fell 9-6 in eight innings to Onalaska High School's summer team. Snider had a big game, however, with three hits, five total bases and two RBIs. Her two-run double in the fourth tied the game at 5-5, before Vanderzee singled and scored in the fifth.
But Onalaska tied the game in the sixth on an error, hit and safety squeeze. Onalaska scored three runs in the eighth, with Luther being retired in order to end the game.
Dobrunz finished with two hits. Tammy Hass drove in a run for Luther.
Klinski relieved Wahl after a four-run first and did not allow an earned run over the next four innings to give Luther's offense a chance. Klinski allowed three hits in her four innings of work. Dobrunz took the loss after relieving Klinski after the batter of the sixth, though her at-times poor control was not an issue, as she did not allow a walk.
Luther was swept 8-4 and 20-7 in its Coulee Region Girls Softball League doubleheader with Aquinas three days earlier. Kayla Kondracki took the loss in the opener, allowing just three hits, but seven walks over the final 3 1//3 innings.

