College softball report: Bulldogs run win streak to six
Apr. 5—Minnesota Duluth broke out late to support a four-hit shutout from pitcher Lauren Dixon to win game one of a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference doubleheader at Southwest Minnesota State on Friday.
The Bulldogs finished with nine runs on 10 hits, but had all their runs and all but one of the hits after the fifth inning.
Kat Burkhardt's two-run homer broke a scoreless tie in the sixth inning. The Bulldogs took a 3-0 lead into the seventh, then added six more runs in the seventh inning, including a two-run triple by Kiana Bender. Bender, Burkhardt and Khendal Johnson had two-hit games.
Dixon struck out four and walked two in the shutout.
UMD won game two 6-1, with Burkhardt hitting another two-run shot in the first inning. SMSU pulled one run back in the bottom of the inning but the tandem of Maddy Walsh and Allison Luoma shut it down from there, splitting the pitching duties. Combined, they allowed one run on seven hits.
Burkhardt and Kate Mohr finished 3-for-4, while Nicole Schmitt added two hits, including a two-run double.
The Bulldogs (25-10, 6-4 NSIC) take a six-game win streak into a doubleheader on Saturday at Concordia-St. Paul.
St. Scholastica opened its conference season with consecutive walk-off defeats, losing both ends of a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader at St. Catherine, 7-6 and 5-4 on Friday in St. Paul.
In game one, CSS took a lead in on a two-run error in the top of the seventh but an RBI double for St. Cate's sent it to extra innings. Again, CSS scored twice, but the hosts won it on a walk-off RBI single from Annabelle Cook.
Emma Bolin and Aislind Dail had three hits apiece for CSS.
In game two, CSS used a homer from Dail to take a 4-2 lead into the seventh inning, only for Cook to strike again with her second RBI single in as many innings to decide the game.
Dail, Samantha Paniagua and Lauren Laviano had two hits apiece for CSS.
The Saints (3-13, 0-2 MIAC) play at St. Mary's on Saturday.
Elle Macal and Indigo Fish both had multiple extra-base hits as Wisconsin-Superior rolled past Crown 8-0 in an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference softball game on Friday, April 5 at NBC Spartan Sports Complex in Superior.
Fish had a triple and double, driving in Macal in both cases, as UWS took a 3-0 lead, then cemented it with a four-run fifth, including a two-run double by Macal.
Bella Garley tossed a five-hit shutout for UWS to get her fifth win of the season.
UWS (11-6, 3-0 UMAC) will host Crown for a doubleheader on Saturday.
