April 28

Pitcher
Right-hander Brittany Rathbun (Sr., Rochester, Minn Mayo HS) pitched well for the Falcons in five appearances. She finished 1-2 with a save. She started three games and had one complete game. In 17.2 innings pitch she allowed 30 hits and 17 runs. She walked only two and struck out nine. She picked up a save in the team's 6-3 win over UW-La Crosse. She earned a win in the team's 5-4 nine-inning win over the Eagles. In those two games she pitched 6.1 innings and allowed 10 hits. She allowed four runs, only two were earned. She walked only one and struck out four. This year Rathbun, 5-8, is 10-5 with a 3.19 ERA. In 94.1 innings pitch she has struck out 59 and walked 13.

Player
Third baseman Emily Howlett (Sr., Eagan, Minn.) had another great week for the Falcons. In six games she hit .571 going 12-21 at the plate. She had one double and three home runs. Howlett, 5-4, scored five runs and had seven RBI. She finished with a 1.048 slugging percentage and a .591 on-base percentage. She was also perfect in the field handling 19 chances without an error. In the team's two wins over UW-La Crosse on Sunday, she hit three home runs and knocked in seven runs. She doubled home two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to help the Falcons to a 5-4 first-game win. Against No. 11 ranked UW-Eau Claire, she was 6-7 at the plate with two runs scored. Howlett is leading the team in hitting with a .504 average. She leads the team with 39 runs scored, 14 doubles and 44 RBI.

April 14

Pitcher
Right-hander Ashley Bertrand’s (Sr., St. Paul, Minn. Como Park HS) pitching helped the Falcons to a five inning 8-0 win over conference foe UW-Superior. She allowed just one hit in the five inning shutout game. Bertrand, 5-8, allowed no earned runs that game and improved her earned run average to 0.96 in 80.1 innings pitched. She struck out 10 and walked none. No Superior runners made it past first base. She allowed just one single and picked up her sixth shutout of the season. She is now 12-1 this year and has only allowed 33 hits and 13 runs. She has struck out 128 and walked only 15. Opponents are hitting just .122 against her.

Player
Third baseman Emily Howlett (Sr., Eagan, Minn.) was perfect on the day in the team’s 8-0 and 10-2 WIAC victories over UW-Superior on Wednesday. Howlett, 5-6, went 3-3 (1.000) at the plate with five RBI and five runs scored. She had a homer and a double. In the five inning 8-0 win, she had a double in the first inning and was left stranded on base. In the third inning, she hit her third home run of the season, a three-run frozen rope to left field, to give the Falcons a 3-0 lead at the time. In the fifth inning, she was intentionally walked but scored on a sac fly. Howlett finished 2-2 with two runs scored and three RBI in the game. She came back in the second game and went 1-1 with two RBI and three runs scored. She was pitched around her first three at bats, but in the seventh inning with bases loaded she was pitched to and hit a two run single to center field. That hit allowed the Falcons to pull ahead by eight runs and end the game early in the sixth inning. Howlett also handled 3 chances in the field without an error. She is leading the team with a .560 batting average. She leads the team with 37 RBI and eleven doubles. She has one triple and a .853 slugging percentage. .

April 7

Pitcher
Right-hander Ashley Bertrand (Sr., St. Paul, Minn. Como Park HS) pitched her first collegiate no-hitter in the team’s 5-0 win at UW-Stout on Saturday. She struck out 12 and walked two. After striking out the side in the first inning, she walked the first batter in the second. That runner was stranded on first. Bertrand retired the next 16 batters. After striking out the fist two batters in the seventh, she walked the third batter. But Bertrand got the final out on a grounder to third. She is now 11-1 on the season with a 1.02 ERA. She has struck out 118 in 75 1/3 innings. Bertrand, 5-8, has thrown five shutouts and three one-hitters this year. Opponents are hitting just .126 against her.

Player
First baseman Keri Feller (Jr., Austin, Minn.) had a hot bat and perfect glove in the field in the team’s 5-0 and 4-0 WIAC wins at UW-Stout on Saturday. Feller, 5-9, went 4-6 (.667) at the plate with five RBI and one run scored. She had a homer and two doubles. In the 5-0 win, she hit her fifth home run of the season, a three-run blast in the third inning to left-center, to give the Falcons a 4-0 lead at the time. She also doubled in the seventh and singled in the first. Feller finished 3-4 with a run scored and three RBI in the game. She came back in the second game and went 1-2 with two RBI. She doubled to left in the first inning to give the Falcons a 2-0 lead. She walked twice in the game. Feller also handled 13 chances in the field without an error. This year she is third on the team with a .426 batting average. She leads the team with five homers and is tied for the team lead with 32 RBI. She has nine doubles and a .779 slugging percentage.

March 31

Pitcher
Right-hander Ashley Bertrand's (Sr., St. Paul, Minn. Como Park HS) pitching helped the Falcons to three wins at the Augustana College Tournament last weekend. She pitched the Falcons to 8-1 and 3-0 wins against the host school and an 8-2 win over Millikin. She allowed just five hits in the three games and had complete game wins in the two Augustana games. Bertrand, 5-8, allowed just one earned run in 18 innings pitched (0.39 ERA). She struck out 20 and walked four. In the 3-0 win she allowed just two singles and picked up her fourth shutout of the season. She is now 10-1 this year with a 1.13 ERA in 68 1/3 innings pitched. She also handled three chances in the field without an error. Bertrand has allowed just 32 hits and 13 runs. She has struck out 106 and walked only 13.

Player
Center fielder Rachel Mathias (Jr., Ripon, Wis.) helped the Falcons to four wins at the Augustana College Tournament last weekend. She finished a sparkling 8-14 at the plate for a .571 average. She scored three runs and had three RBI. She hit her first two homers of the season and had two doubles. Mathias, 5-5, had a 1.142 slugging percentage in the four games. She had multiple hits in three of the four games. This year Mathias is hitting .412 with four doubles, two homers and nine RBI. She has scored 15 times and stole three bases without being caught.

March 24

Pitcher
Right-hander Ashley Bertrand (Sr., St. Paul, Minn. Como Park HS) finished 4-1 on the team’s Spring Break trip to the Rebel Spring Games in Florida. UWRF finished 7-1 in Florida. She had a 1.73 ERA in 32 1/3 innings pitched. She started five games and threw three complete games. She had a big game on the last day when she threw a one-hitter in a 5-0 win over Otterbein. The only hit came in the seventh inning – a single. Bertrand was also at the top of her game in a 2-0, 10-inning win over Rowan. She allowed just three hits and one walk. She struck out 11. “Ashley pitched an amazing game against Rowan,” said Falcon Coach Jody Gabriel. She allowed 17 hits and 10 runs – eight were earned. Bertrand, 5-8, walked only six and struck out 50. She averaged 10 strikeouts per game. Opponents hit just .150 against her. She also handled seven fielding chances without an error. She had double digit strikeouts in four of the five games she pitched. In her last 28 innings she allowed just seven hits – all were singles. This year she has a 7-1 record with a 1.39 ERA. She has struck out 86 and walked only nine in 50 1/3 innings.

Player
Third baseman Emily Howlett (Sr., Eagan, Minn.) was one of the team’s top players in the Falcons’ Spring Break trip to the Rebel Spring Games in Florida. UWRF finished 7-1 in Florida. She finished 12-26 at the plate for a .462 average. She led the team with 11 runs scored, 13 RBI, four doubles, two home runs and a .846 slugging percentage. She walked five times and struck out just once in 31 plate appearances. Howlett, 5-4, had a .548 on-base percentage and a .933 fielding percentage. She made just one error in 15 fielding chances. Her best game was in a 5-0 win over Otterbein when she went 4-4 at the plate with two RBI and three runs scored. She homered to center and doubled. She had three multiple hit games and was held hitless in just one game. She had RBI in six of the seven contests. “Emily had some big hits for us,” said Falcon Coach Jody Gabriel. After 14 games she is hitting .540 with 20 runs scored, 27 RBI, seven doubles and two homers.

March 17

Player
Catcher Ashley James (Sr., Mankato, Minn. Loyola HS) helped the Falcons to a split in the team's first two games at the Rebel Spring Games in Kissimmee, Fla., on Sunday. In the team's 3-2 win over Bethany, she was 3-4 with a run scored. In the two games she was 4-6 with a walk. She had 20 putouts and four assists with no errors in the field. She also threw out two Montclair base runners. Neither team stole a base against the Falcons in the two games. James, 5-4, also picked off two runners at second base. After eight games she is hitting .364 with two RBI. She has handled 73 chances in the field with no errors and has thrown out four of five base stealers.

March 10

Pitcher
Ashley Bertrand (Sr., St. Paul, Minn. Como Park HS), a right-hander, had three more strong games for the Falcons last week. The Falcons finished 4-0 and Bertrand started two games and pitched in relief in a third. She pitched 11 innings and allowed six hits and only two earned runs. Bertrand finished the week with a 2-0 record. She struck out 20 and walked only three. Opponents hit just .154 against her. She had a 1.27 ERA in the three games. This year Bertrand, 5-8, is 3-0 with a .78 ERA. In 18 innings she has struck out 36 and walked only three. Opponents are hitting .156 against her.

Player
First baseman Keri Feller (Jr., Austin, Minn.) helped lead the Falcons to a perfect week and four wins. Feller, 5-9, was 10-14 at the plate for a .714 average. She had four doubles and two three-run homers. She had a 1.429 slugging percentage and led the Falcons with 14 RBI. Feller hit a three-run homer in the team’s 14-0 win over Concordia-Moorhead on Friday and another three-run homer in the team’s 11-2 win over Augsburg on Saturday. She had a .733 on-base percentage, Feller walked once and didn’t strike out in 15 plate appearances. She was also perfect in the field with 21 put outs and no errors. Feller is hitting .500 this year with five doubles, two homers and 15 RBI.

March 3

Pitcher
Ashley Bertrand (Sr., St. Paul, Minn. Como Park HS), a right-hander, struck out 16 batters in the team’s 7-0 win over Northland to set a UWRF single game record. She struck out the side in the first, third and seventh innings and had at least one strike out in all seven innings. Two of the 16 outs were called third strikes. She faced 25 batters, just four over the limit. Bertrand, 5-8, allowed four hits – all singles – and only one runner reached second. That came in the final inning when Northland’s first batter singled and advanced to second after the third batter of the inning singled. But Bertrand retired the final two batters on swinging strikes. She did not walk a batter and three of the other five outs she got came on ground balls to the infield. Bertrand entered the game as the school’s all-time strike out career leader with 355.

Player
Center fielder Rachel Mathias (Jr., Ripon, Wis.) had two outstanding games in the team’s 7-0 win over Northland and 7-1 win over St. Scholastica on Friday. Mathias, 5-5, was 3-4 in the two games with four runs scored. She walked twice, once in each game, and stole a base against St. Scholastica. She also had a double against the Saints.