LA CROSSE, WIS. – The Valley City State softball team swept its conference doubleheader at Viterbo University Friday, improving to a 6-3 record in conference play.
 
The Vikings tallied 33 hits on the day, including 11 for extra bases. Leadoff hitter Ashlynne Copinga led the effort with seven hits with a double and a triple on the day.
 
VCSU defeated the V-Hawks 12-5 in the first game and then won 17-8 in six innings to finish the 2-0 sweep. VCSU now holds a 12-17 record overall while Viterbo drops to 6-19 overall and 2-10 in conference play.
 
VCSU and Viterbo round out the four-game series on Saturday. First pitch of the doubleheader is slated for 11 a.m. in La Crosse, Wis.
 
VCSU 12, Viterbo 5
The VCSU offense tallied 17 hits in the series-opener and kicked off the first inning with a 5-0 lead, highlighted by Alyssa DePoorter's three-run homer.
 
The Vikings continued to build its lead to 11-0, capped by a two-run triple from Ashlynne Copinga. The V-Hawks found two runs runs in the fourth inning and three more in the fifth to close the gap to 11-5.
 
Andrea Rodriguez drove in DePoorter in the sixth inning to round out scoring in the game.
 
Ashlynne Copinga went 4-for-5 at the plate with a triple, scored two runs and drove in two. Alyssa DePoorter went 3-for-4 with a home run and a double, two runs scored and three RBI. Ashlyn Diemert and Sierra Crocker added two hits apiece, including a Diemert double.
 
Joelle Lamontagne got the win for VCSU after starting in the circle and working 5 innings. She allowed five runs, four of which were earned, while walking one and striking out four. Brooke Gaudry tossed 2 innings in relief and did not give up a single hit.
 
Maddie Wilkey got the loss for Viterbo, allowing 11 runs on 13 hits in 4 innings. She walked just one and struck out one. Ella Driebel pitched 3 innings and allowed one run on four hits.
 
Megan Jardine went 3-for-4 for the V-Hawks and scored two runs while driving in one.
 
VCSU 17, Viterbo 8 (6 innings)
The hot-hitting Vikings then continued its rally into game two, totaling 16 hits and scoring 17 runs to defeat Viterbo 17-8 in six innings.  
 
The two teams each scored four runs in the first inning, and Viterbo took its first lead of the day after posting four more in the third inning to make it 8-5. VCSU's Maddy Zander held the V-Hawks scoreless the rest of the way and let the offense take care of the rest.
 
VCSU added three runs in the fourth and two in the fifth to hold a 10-8 advantage. The Vikings then exploded with seven hits and seven runs in the sixth inning. Crocker kicked off scoring with a two-run single. Marissa Hawkins then powered a three-run homer, directly followed by solo homers from Makenzee Stone and DePoorter.

Copinga and Hawkins led the Vikings with three hits apiece. Crocker drove in a game-best five runs while DePoorter and Hawkins each drove in four. Hawkins scored four times, and Copinga and Riley Perryman each swiped the plate three times.
 
Zander got the win in the circle after 3 and 2/3 innings of work. She allowed two runs on three hits while walking two and striking out five. Gaudry started in the circle, pitching 2 and 1/3 innings and allowing six runs on six hits.
 
Ella Driebel got the loss for Viterbo, pitching 2 and 1/3 innings in relief. She allowed nine runs on nine hits and walked three batters. Payton Lamont started for the V-Hawks and gave up eight runs on seven hits in 3 and 2/3 innings.
 
Morgan James hit a pair of two-run home runs for Viterbo to total four RBIs in the game. Amanda Bogdonovi added two hits, two runs and two RBIs for the V-Hawks.