MIDLAND, Mich. – The Saginaw Valley State University softball team clipped the Ashland Eagles by a score of 3-1 today (May 2) to advance to the GLIAC Championship Game. The Cardinals await the winner of the Ashland/Wayne State game for tomorrow's game that is scheduled to start at 10:00 AM. This marks the second straight year that the Cardinals have advanced to the championship game through the winner's bracket.

After three scoreless innings the Cardinals struck first on a Stacy Kraatz (Howell, Mich./Hartland HS) homerun to centerfield. Not to be out done, catcher Jessica Anhel (Oxford, Mich.) followed suit with her own blast to deep center field. Both players now have two homeruns each in the 2009 GLIAC Tournament. Ashland answered back in the bottom of the fourth on a Shannon Grey homerun that cut the SVSU advantage to 2-1.

The Cardinals would add an insurance run in the top of the fifth when Marsha Beaubien (Alpena, Mich.) scored on an Anhel sacrifice fly to deep centerfield to put the Cardinals up by the final score of 3-1.
SVSU ace Jade Fulton got the start in the circle for the Cardinals, allowing one run on four hits while throwing a complete seven innings. Fulton struck out 12 Eagle batters on her way to her 15th win of the season.

The Cardinal improve to 34-9 on the season and will play the winner of the Ashland/Wayne State at 10:00 AM at Fisher Field on the Campus of Northwood University.