As quickly as the Central College softball team jumped on top of the American Rivers Conference race, the No. 17-ranked Dutch lost their hold on first place, suffering a 6-2, 1-0 home sweep against Luther College Wednesday.

Luther fifth year pitching ace Kendra Cooper had a dominant day, throwing 194 pitches to go the distance in both games. She improved to 19-3 and pushed the Norse into a first-place conference tie with Coe College heading into the regular season’s final day. Central, 29-7 overall and 10-4 in the conference, swept Coe Saturday at Cedar Rapids, but now finds itself a game back in the standings. Coe closes at home against Buena Vista University Friday while Luther plays host to Simpson College in a Saturday doubleheader. Central travels to Dubuque for a 1 p.m. twinbill at Loras College Saturday.

Luther took command early in the opener with a three-run second inning, adding a two-run home run in the third. Central scratched out a run in the fourth inning as first baseman Megan Stuhr had a two-out single and eventually scored on a double steal. But the squad’s biggest threat came in the sixth inning when, down 6-1, third baseman Franie Burnett singled home a run. The Dutch loaded the bases, bringing the potential tying run to the plate, but could not inflict further damage.

Sydni Huisman (14-4) gave up four earned runs on seven hits and three walks over 4.2 innings. Morgan Schaben threw 2.1 innings of one-hit relief with no walks and two strikeouts.

Cooper struck out 11 and walked two, needing 114 pitches to cover seven innings. She was even sharper in game two with a three-hit shutout, walking a batter and fanning three. Cooper’s performance was nearly matched by Central freshman Emma Beck but a couple of defensive missteps allowed Luther to scratch out an unearned run in the sixth inning. Central put two runners aboard in the seventh but came up empty. Beck (10-1) scattered five hits and two walks—one intentional—and struck out three in seven innings in suffering her first loss.