ST. PAUL, Minn. (4/20/06)-- Concordia scored 10 runs in the first two innings in their opening game of the doubleheader with Macalester and never looked back, sweeping the Scots, 12-3, 4-1 in St. Paul on Thursday. The first game was called after six innings due to the eight-run rule.

Amanda Johnson was a single shy of a series cycle in helping the Cobbers run their winning streak to four games. The sophomore second baseman clouted a home run and a triple in the first game and then followed with a double in the second game as she scored four runs and drove in three to aid in bringing Concordia's conference record to the .500 mark for the first time since Apr. 8. The Cobbers are now 7-7 in league play and 12-14 overall. Macalester loses for the seventh straight time and sees their MIAC mark fall to 1-15 and their overall record slide to 3-25.

Concordia jumped on Macalester pitching right away in the opening inning of game 1. The Cobbers connected on only two hits as they sent 10 batters to the plate while scoring five runs. They backed that scoring spree up with another five-run outing in the second inning. In the second, Concordia collected six hits and sent eight players to the plate.

The Scots scored a single run in the fourth and then two in the fifth to bring the game to within seven at 10-3 before Concordia pushed the deficit over the critical eight-run mark with a pair of runs in the sixth inning. The big blow in the frame came from Amanda Johnson who hammered her fifth home run of the season to score both runs.

Lindy Sparby pitched the first three innings for Concordia and did not allow a run. She limited Macalester to three hits and struck out five in picking up her team-leading seventh victory.

In the second game, Concordia used the strength of new-found pitching star Jill Reinert to slowly pull away and win 4-1. Reinert allowed only one earned run over seven innings and struck out eight in earning her second straight win. In her last two starts she has allowed only one earned run in 13 innings of work and struck out 15. She is now 3-3 on the season.

Offensively, the Cobbers scored single runs in four different innings. Only two Cobber players had multiple-hit games in the nightcap. Kelli Niess went 2-for-4 and scored three of the four runs for Concordia and Shantelle Nogowski went 2-for-3 with an RBI and a triple. Niess had her nine-game hitting streak come to a screeching halt in the first game after going 0-for-3.

Concordia will face two of the top three teams in the league at home over the weekend. The Cobbers will host third-place St. Mary's on Saturday, Apr. 22 at 1:00pm and then turnaround and face off against two-time defending national champion St. Thomas on Sunday, Apr. 23 at 1:00pm. Both series will be played at the Jake Christiansen Athletic Complex.