By Paul Lecker

Sports Reporter

MAUSTON — The Marshfield softball team started its season with a bang, scoring five runs in the first inning and went on to blank Wausau West 10-0 on Friday at the Woodside Sports Complex.

The game counted as a Wisconsin Valley Conference contest between the two teams.

Melissa Roberts had an RBI double to score Morgan Nordbeck, who had singled, to put the Tigers on the board right away.

After a walk, Megan Donahue had an RBI single, Lexi Dupee scored on a passed ball, and Kayla Kluge had an RBI groundout to give Marshfield a 5-0 lead.

Roberts had a sacrifice fly in the second inning, and Marshfield added four more runs in the fourth.

Cailtin Kozik threw three innings to earn the win, and Donahue finished off the victory with a pair of shutout innings for the Tigers.

Roberts and Nordbeck each had three hits to lead the way for Marshfield, which had 16 hits in all.

Marshfield will play Stoughton and Menomonie in a pair of nonconference games Saturday at Mauston.

(Hub City Times Sports Reporter Paul Lecker is also the publisher of MarshfieldAreaSports.com.)

Tigers 10, Warriors 0

Marshfield 510 40 – 10 16 1

Wausau West 000 00 – 0 3 0

WP: Caitlin Kozik. LP: Sam Hack.

SO: Hack 2; Kozik 1, Megan Donahue 4. BB: Hack 2; Kozik 1, Donahue 1.

Top hitters: WW, Callie Mataczynski 3B. M, Melissa Roberts 3×3, 2B, 2 runs; Morgan Nordbeck 3×4, 2 runs; Donahue 2×3, 2B, 2 runs; Kozik 2×3; Alyssa Wilhelm 2×3.

Records: Marshfield 1-0 overall and Wisconsin Valley Conference; Wausau West 0-2, 0-1 WVC.