ST. CLOUD, Minn. — The Southwest Minnesota State softball team opened the 2016 season this morning with a split against Fort Hays State and Nebraska Kearney. The Mustangs defeated the Tigers, 2-1 in eight innings, before dropping a 7-5 decision to the Lopers to finish the day.
 
FHSU Recap
Box Score
 
Taylor Koloc reached on an outfielder error, which scored Sam Flack for the game-winning run. Flack started the rally with a one-out single.
 
FHSU (1-4) collected a pair of hits in the bottom of the eighth, but a ground out with runners on the corners ended the game.
 
Athena Golling picked up the win for SMSU with 3 1/3 innings of shutout relief. She scattered four hits, while recording two strikeouts and one walk.
 
Alex O'Connor started in the circle for SMSU and tossed 4 2/3 innings allowing one run on five hits with five strikeouts and two walks.
 
FHSU started the scoring with a run in the first inning, but SMSU tied the game in the fourth with a two-out rally. Koloc walked, stole second and then came around to score on an infield single by Janae Annetts to tie the game at 1-1.
 
Karmann Carroll led SMSU's seven-hit attack with two hits.
 
UNK Recap
Box Score
 
SMSU started the scoring early, as Abbie Decker and Karmann Carroll both led off with singles at their first at bats. Jazmayne Neely push the runners over on a fielders choice, before Janae Annetts singled to the third base to drive in Carroll from third and to give SMSU a 1-0 lead.
 
UNK tied it up in the bottom half of the first inning after loading the bases up, before scoring on a fielders choice.
 
The Lopers erupted in the second inning after juicing the bases again on three-straight singles. UNK hit a single to left field to score a run and followed it with a double to left field, which cleared the bags and gave them a 5-1 advantage.
 
SMSU cut into the lead in the top of the third after Koloc singled to left to score Sam Flake and Annetts followed with a single to score Koloc and to trail by two runs.
 
UNK added a run in the bottom of the fourth after a double to center field and another in the bottom of the six after a lead-off homer to center field.
 
SMSU tried to put together a comeback in the top of the seventh after a double by Flack pushed Decker into scoring position with one out. Neely grounded out into a fielders choice at the next at bat, but scored Decker. Koloc followed with a single to left to score Flack and to trail by two, but the comeback came up short as a grounder ended the game.
 
Flack led the SMSU offense connecting on three hits and scoring two runs. Koloc and Annnetts recorded two RBIs apiece.
 
Southwest Minnesota State will face Emporia State tomorrow night starting at 9:30 p.m.