WHEATON, Ill. -- The Augustana Vikings softball team dropped a pair of games in their final road series of the season, falling to the Wheaton Thunder in back-to-back games by scores of 4-3 and 12-3.

Game One (L 4-3)

Augie got on the board first in the opening contest, seeing a run come through on a Morgan Bielfeldt infield single to the left side. The home team evened things up in the bottom of the third to make it 1-1 after three innings played.

In the fourth, the Vikings benefited from a pair of solo home runs as Claudia Buchholz broke the tie with a blast to left field, followed by another from Ashlyn Mathers two batters later. The 3-1 advantage for Augustana remained intact through six-and-a-half innings, setting up one final at-bat opportunity for Wheaton.

After an error to begin the frame, the Vikings got their first out recorded on a pop out. From there, four consecutive singles from the Thunder allowed them to cut the deficit to one, with the last of the four bringing in two scores for the walk-off win.

The Thunder out-hit the Vikings 12-6 in game one. Augie was led by two hits from both Bielfeldt and Claire Weeks. Nadia Ranieri struck out seven in six innings for Augie.

Game Two (L 12-3)

In the second half of the doubleheader, the Vikings struck first again, this time plating two in the bottom of the first inning. Buchholz fueled the scoring with another solo home run, followed by an RBI single from Ashley Dehmlow.

Wheaton responded with a five-spot in their next at-bat to make it 5-2 after two innings of action. The Thunder added one more in the fourth before Jennica Soliz produced a run for the Vikings on a bases-loaded walk. Wheaton pulled away with four in the sixth and two in the seventh for the 12-3 win.

The Thunder out-hit the Vikings 12-6 for the second straight game. Dehmlow had the lone multi-hit effort for Augie in game two. 

With the losses, Augustana drops to 18-15 overall and 4-10 in CCIW action. The team will return home for their final games of the 2022 season and for Senior Day on Sunday, May 1 when they welcome in the No. 23 ranked Millikin Big Blue for a doubleheader. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. from Carver Field.