IOWA CITY, Iowa -- The Wisconsin softball team concluded its weekend series against Iowa with a 3-1 win at Bob Pearl Filed on Sunday afternoon. The Badgers (23-17-1 overall, 8-5-1 Big Ten) ended their weekend on a high note with a sixth-inning comeback led by two critical RBI from senior Katie Christner.
 
Senior Taylor-Paige Stewart (13-9) earned the win after pitching all seven innings in her third appearance of the weekend, only allowing for one run and seven hits. She had a season-high nine strikeouts in the game and is now two wins shy of her season high of 15.
 
"She (Stewart) gutted it out today. To throw three days in a row at a Big Ten site just shows a lot of heart," UW head coach Yvette Healy said. "I think our seniors once again led the way with Macy Oswald with one of the RBI and Katie Christner with the other two.
 
"And with Taylor-Paige on the mound, she just wanted the ball and that's what you want is for kids to have that focus. It was a great day for her to have nine strikeouts and I think we needed every single one of them."
 
With the score tied at 1-1 headed into the sixth inning, the Badgers continued their momentum from the fifth inning as Chloe Miller ripped a leadoff single to right field. An error put freshman Melanie Cross and moved Miller up to second for Stewart. With freshman Gabby Scherle in to pinch run for Miller, Stewart laid down a sacrifice bunt that moved both runners into scoring position.
 
In a perfect scenario, Christner blasted a single up the middle to score both Scherle and Cross. Wisconsin took a 3-1 lead after earning two runs off of two hits in the top of the sixth.
 
Iowa (12-28, 2-12) started the game with back-to-back errors that put sophomore Kelsey Jenkins and senior Ashley Van Zeeland on base before Miller was walked. But the Badgers were unable to capitalize and left the bases loaded.
 
UI took an early 1-0 lead in the second inning that Iowa kept until the fifth inning. The Hawkeyes started the inning with back-to-back hits until Stewart took down Whitney Repole swinging. But the Hawkeyes got on the board first after Sarah Kurtz lined a sacrifice fly to right field.
 
Wisconsin trailed Iowa, 1-0, for the next two innings unable to capitalize on anything and going down in order in the third and fourth innings.
 
In the bottom of the fourth inning, Stewart earned her 100th strikeout of the season and the 391st of her career as she brought down Repole swinging again.
 
It was not until the fifth inning that the Badgers finally saw a hit. Samantha Arents sliced a double, her 11th of the season, down the left side for UW's first hit of the game.
 
Senior Macy Oswald then hit an RBI single, which sent Kelly Welsh, who reentered the game to run, in to score for Wisconsin and tie the game up, 1-1. The Badgers finished the inning with one run and two hits.
 
The Badgers went on to stifle the Hawkeyes in the bottom of the sixth. Stewart was able to knock off a batter looking with bases loaded to end the inning.
 
Iowa responded in the bottom of the seventh with a Hawkeye hitting a leadoff double but it was not enough as Wisconsin went on to win, 3-1.
Overall, the Hawkeyes outhit the Badgers 7-4. Christner led Wisconsin with one hit two RBI while three other Badgers recorded one hit.
 
"It's a huge win and a huge week for us," Healy added. "It might be one of the best weeks of softball I've seen with four Big Ten wins in the same week, that's historic."
 
UW returns home to Goodman Diamond for a 10-game homestand starting with a doubleheader against North Dakota on Wednesday.