The Alden Blackhawks fastpitch softball team had sought one identity all season and it appeared it had achieved it Monday night against Winona.

The Blackhawks, made up of players from Alden and Albert Lea, came together to defeat the Winstars who had compiled a 42-8 record on the season.

Alden used a strong start from Lana Howe to earn a 6-5 win in the first game of a doubleheader in Albert Lea. Howe limited the Winstars to five runs on two hits, and drove in three runs with a double in the third inning.

“We haven’t done real well this season but we’re working better together even though it’s towards the end of the season,” Howe said. “It felt really good, amazing that we could do that.”

It’s been a work-in-progress all season to mesh players from two towns together but Monday it looked as though the two towns transformed into a team. The team unity the Blackhawks displayed has been the biggest difference coach Rich Lackey has noticed.

“That’s probably the biggest one I’ve seen is calling them a team,” Lackey said. “The beginning of the season they were Alden girls and Albert Lea girls, they were two separate entities. Now you’re starting to see they’re one team. As a coach that’s very good to see.”

Alden’s unity was not easy to come by for the players.

“It’s kind of like a roller coaster because you have to join two teams and make it all work together as one,” third baseman Holly Cole said. “The win was just a plus on our side. We’ve had a rough season, so it was nice to come in and beat a good team like this.”

The Blackhawks have not won many games this year because of fielding errors and unfamiliarity with each other, but all of that subsided and the team looked confident.

“We’ve just been working on a lot of stuff and it worked out in the end,” Cole said.

Alden limited itself to one fielding error in the game and the defense made plays behind Howe.

But in the second game Winona came out ready for retribution.

The Winstars scored two quick runs in the first and added four more in the second for a 6-1 lead as the Blackhawks experienced a letdown.

“That was the difference between the first game and the second game — getting tired and the confidence was gone just a little bit,” Lackey said. “In that first game very confident and hitting the ball well.”

Still, Alden can rest knowing they defeated a team headed for nationals by becoming a team over the course of the year.

“It’s hard coming from two different towns,” Howe said. “I think we’ve all become friends and hopefully we can do it again next summer. The more we get to come out and play summer ball, the better we are in the season.”

Alden 6, Winona 5

Winona – 002 12 – 5 2 1

Alden – 114 00 – 6 9 1

WP – Lana Howe 5 IP, 2 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 9 BB, 3 K

Winona 11, Alden 4

Alden – 100 30 – 4 6 2

Winona – 243 2x – 11 8 3

LP – Erin Everhard 4 IP, 8 H, 12 R, 5 ER, 5 BB, 1 K