MILWAUKEE, Wis. – If the Edgewood College softball team plays this well in these cold temperatures, the Eagles may never want it to warm up. The Eagles dove into Northern Athletics Conference play on Tuesday and combined to outscore MSOE 18-1 in two games on the Raiders' home diamond.

Edgewood College (4-14, 2-0 NAC) jumped out early as Katie Landon singled through the right side to bring in Jessica Spitzer who tallied a base knock earlier. Junior Charlie Leikness worked two scoreless before MSOE (0-6, 0-2 NAC) strung together three hits and tied the game at one. After quiet fourth, the bats awoke in the Eagles' half of the fourth as four consecutive players ripped a hit to bring in three runs and take a 4-1 lead.

In the seventh, Edgewood College added to their three-run cushion as the Eagles tacked on four more runs with three singles, a double, and two walks. The Raiders' threatened to score with a pair of two-out hits in the seventh, but centerfielder Carlene DeCoster gunned down MSOE's Lauren Boyle at third base to end the game and Edgewood College's 12 game losing streak.

Rachel DeJongh toed the rubber in game two of Edgewood College's conference opener and pitched a gem. The freshman only allowed two hits, which came in the first inning, while striking out a pair in five innings. Meanwhile, despite the frigid temperatures, the Eagles' bats did not cool down a bit.

Three hits led to three runs in the first inning and the offense continued to roll. Diesch tripled to lead off the third and scored on Alyssa Shulting's groundout to the pitcher. In the fourth, DeCoster started with a single and after a stolen base and a wild pitch, she scored on Diesch's sacrifice fly to center field.

Already leading 6-0, Jamie Spangler ripped a pinch-hit single to lead off the fifth frame. Tiffani Pierce followed with a base hit of her own and after a strikeout, DeJongh contributed with a double to score both. Spitzer and Diesch then hit back-to-back one-baggers, bringing in a pair before the inning ended with a groundout. DeJongh came out to the circle in the bottom half of the fifth and then ended the game with three straight groundouts.

Diesch had a monster day at the plate for Edgewood College as she finished 6-for-7 with four runs batted in and a slugging percentage of 1.286. Five other Eagle players had a multi-hit game in one of the two contests.

As a team, Edgewood College hit .465 (26-for-56) with 16 runs batted in. Pitching was also strong as Leikness and DeJongh both tossed complete games while surrendering only one run between the two.

Edgewood College will look to continue their strong conference start as they host Alverno College this Saturday at Ceniti Park in Verona. First pitch is scheduled for noon. Live stats and live video will be available on EdgewoodCollegeEagles.com.