EPHRAIM – The game marked the end of an era, and it certainly lived up to what you would expect of such a momentous event. In a softball game on Saturday which was the last regular season sporting event to be played between Snow College and North Idaho College (NIC) for the foreseeable future, Snow scored twice in the last inning for a 7-6 win and spoiled the Cardinals' try for a series sweep.Snow lost Friday's doubleheader to NIC by scores of 8-6 and 9-3, and looked listless in dropping Saturday's opener, 8-0. Sophomore Kylene Hatton led the Cardinals, banging out three doubles and two triples as NIC won the first three games. Snow scored four runs in the bottom of the sixth inning of Friday's series opener to take a 6-5 lead, but NIC scored once in the top of the seventh to send it to extra innings, and then scored twice in the eighth to steal the 8-6 win.In Saturday's series finale, Snow came alive to take a 5-0 lead in the first three innings. Shortstop Kenzie Rasmussen staked the Badgers to a lead with a solo homer in the first inning, her ninth of the season. Snow stretched their 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third when Renee Fagg belted a bases-loaded triple and then scored herself on a passed ball.Badger starting pitcher Ashley Kay held NIC hitless through the first three innings, but down 5-0 the Cardinals came alive pushing across three runs in the top of the fourth. The Cardinals scored three more in the top of the fifth to take a 6-5 lead before Badger hurler Belle Stoddard came in to relieve Kay with two outs and two on. Stoddard promptly shut down the Cardinal threat and then gave up only a walk and no hits while striking out three over the last two innings.Down by one heading into their last at-bat, Badger sophomore Nicole Weiss started the seventh inning with a double to the gap in left. Catcher Renee Fagg hit a come-backer, but NIC pitcher Brittany Hecker threw wide to first allowing Weiss to score and Fagg to go to second. Badger head coach Chad Larsen put in speedy Jessica Barker to run for Fagg and Danika Gough delivered a single up the middle. In a close play, Barker slid wide to the right and snuck her hand in to swipe the plate giving Snow a 7-6 win."We needed the win," Larsen said. "The girls could have easily given up when they lost the lead, but they really showed their character coming back the way they did."Fagg and Gough each had three hits in the final game win. Fagg had six hits in the series including a pair of doubles and a triple, and Weiss had two doubles and a homer among her four hits in the series. Rasmussen finished with five hits and scored five runs.After being in the Scenic West Athletic Conference (SWAC) or its predecessors since 1968, North Idaho (22-14) will be jumping ship next year to join the Northwest Athletics Association, an arrangement which will significantly reduce their volleyball, basketball and softball teams' travel times on road trips. After heading home from Ephraim on Saturday for the 14-hour bus ride home, the Cardinals will take another 14-hour, 875-mile ride to get to Carson City, Nev., to play next week's series at Western Nevada College, their last road trip in SWAC play.Snow will host the nation's fourth-ranked team this weekend when the 31-9 Southern Idaho Eagles come to town. Western Nevada (7-28) will visit Snow College (15-21) for a four-game series the following weekend before the Badgers play at Salt Lake Community College (26-13) to close out their regular season. All three series will be Friday/Saturday doubleheaders, with the first pitch coming at 1:00 p.m. on Friday. There is chance that Snow and NIC could face each other in the opening round of the SWAC tournament which will be played May 7 through 10.