Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Records

Upper Iowa (11-19, 4-6 NSIC) || Minnesota State (30-6, 14-0 NSIC)
 

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Summary

It wasn't going to be easy and the Upper Iowa softball team knew it. To take down the NSIC's top team on the road is a very difficult accomplishment; too difficult for UIU on Thursday afternoon. The Mavericks of Minnesota State proved why they are atop the NSIC with an undefeated record as they earned another conference sweep. MSU defeated UIU, 11-3 in game one, and 6-0 in game two to improve to 14-0 in the NSIC and 30-6 overall. The Peacocks dropped the series, but will need a quick rebound as they host two more conference foes this Friday and Saturday in Fayette. 
 

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Game One Recap - UIU 3, MSU 11

From the start, Minnesota State's starting pitcher Coley Ries was dominant. She dispatched the first eight batters she faced. Finally, in the third inning Adrienna Olson picked up a single, but by then the home team owned a 6-0 lead.
 
MSU added four runs in the bottom of the first inning, including a lead-off home run from Samantha Holien. The Mavericks then tacked on a pair of runs in the second after recording another home run – this one, a two-run blast from Kelly Wood.
 
The Peacocks began their comeback in the third. Following Olson's single, Katie Mnichowicz roped a double down the right-field line. Olson took off from first on contact and as she rounded second base she kicked it into second gear. As MSU reacted to the hit, Olson scooted around the bases to score and put her team on the board. Unfortunately, the visitors' inning ended there. MSU earned the final out of the third and the teams headed to the bottom of the inning.
 
Once again, Holien helped the Mavericks scratch the scoreboard as the home team's lead swelled to 8 runs. Holien began a three-run inning with an RBI-double. Lindsay Erickson followed that up with another run batted in as she reached on a fielder's choice. Before the Peacocks could get out of the inning, Wood brought another teammate home as she reached base on an error.
 
UIU needed to begin a large-scale comeback as the team headed to the top of the fourth trailing 9-1. Unfortunately, Ries was still hot and it was a quick inning for the Mavericks as they earned three quick outs. The visitors answered right back with a 1-2-3 inning of their own in the bottom of the fourth before finding a rhythm on offense.
 
Shelby Crist and Katie Sammons earned back-to-back singles before UIU turned back to their shortstop to provide a spark. With runners on second and third, Mnichowicz ripped a single to the grass and brought Crist and Sammons across the diamond.  The lead was cut to six, but UIU would not get another chance.

MSU added two runs in the fifth to clinch the five-inning, 11-3 victory as the run-rule came into effect. For Upper Iowa, it was the 17th straight loss to the Mavericks since UIU joined the Northern Sun in 2006.  
 

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Game Two Recap - UIU 0, MSU 6

Despite a solid outing from pitcher Brooke Redmond, the Peacocks couldn't find the run support needed to salvage a split against the Mavericks. UIU managed a total of six hits in game two, but couldn't get a run on the board as the Mavericks used two big innings to seal a 6-0 victory at home.

Redmond was strong from the pitching circle, but the home team took advantage of some early and late struggles from the sophomore left-hander. After Redmond recorded a pair of outs in the bottom of the first inning, the Mavericks took advantage of a misplaced pitch. With two runners aboard, MSU's Ashley Thell went yard and gave her team a 3-0 lead after one.
 
The Peacock defense held the home team in check for the next five innings, but in the bottom of the sixth, the Mavericks added a few insurance runs. Erickson led-off the inning with a triple before Wood added another RBI to her stat line with a double. Wood made it past home plate as MSU earned a single to left. The Mavericks added one more run to their lead before the inning was over.

The Peacocks added one final hit to their total in the seventh, but the Mavericks were able to record the final three outs and clinch the 6-0 win. With the sweep, the Mavericks stay atop the NSIC with an undefeated 14-0 conference record.
 

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Up Next

The Peacocks will have a quick turnaround as they host Northern State in Fayette on Friday at 1 p.m. Then UIU will play host to the Dragons of MSU Moorhead on Saturday afternoon.