The Penguins fall to 14-34 overall and 6-15 in the Horizon League while the Crusaders improve to 32-16 overall and 12-6 in the league.
The Penguins owned an 8-4 lead with two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning when the Crusaders got hot at the plate. Three straight singles and a three-run home run tied the game at 8-8.
In the bottom of the eighth, a bases-loaded walk plated the game-winning run.
With the game tied at 1-1 after two innings, the Penguins plated three runs in the top of the third sparked by a two-run single by sophomore Kristen Philen and Philen later scored on a Crusader scoring error.
The Crusaders cut the deficit to 4-2 with a run in the bottom half of the third, but the Penguins responded with three more in the top of the fourth to take an 7-2 advantage. After singles by Kristina Rendle and Rumph, sophomore Jordan Ingalls belted a three-run home run over the left-center field wall to give the Guins a five-run cushion.
Runs by the Crusaders in the bottom of the fourth and fifth were answered with an unearned run by the Penguins in the top of sixth to make the score 8-4.
Sophomore Haley Thomas led off the game with her fourth home run of the week and eighth of the season to put the Guins ahead 1-0.
The Penguins close out the regular season with a three-game series against Green Bay, May 8-9, in Green Bay, Wis.
