ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Southwest Minnesota State softball team (16-27 overall, 8-12 NSIC) dropped a pair of games against the University of Minnesota Duluth (32-12, 18-6) 7-4 and 11-2 on Monday afternoon at South Field on the campus of the University of St. Thomas.
 
UMD outhit SMSU 9-7 in game one, with Abby Russell and Lileya Kebos each collecting a pair of hits to lead the Mustang offense. 
 
SMSU found the scoreboard early, as Russell would score on a two-out RBI single from Jillian Noel after leading the game off with a double.
 
The Bulldogs answered in the bottom of the inning, turning four consecutive hits into three runs and taking a 3-1 lead into the second inning. 
 
The 3-1 score held until the third inning, when Bailey Johnson would send a two-run blast over the left field fence to score Russell and tie the game at 3-3. 
 
UMD would get both runs back in the bottom of the inning to regain the lead at 5-3. 
 
The Mustangs chipped at the deficit in the fourth, as Makenna Waldow followed up a Kebos double with an RBI single to center, cutting the Bulldog lead in half at 5-4. 
 
With two outs and a pair of runners in scoring position, UMD would break through, driving a two run double to centerfield to take a 7-4 lead that would hold on to be the final score. 
 
SMSU's bats were silenced to close out the game, as Sam Pederson sent down the final 11 batters she faced to lead UMD to victory. 
 
Shelby Bloemendaal (8-8) received the loss, giving up five runs (four earned), on seven hits and two walks, picking up one strikeout in three innings. 
 
UMD's bats stayed awake for game two, scoring 11 runs on 12 hits to win the shortened game. 
 
The Bulldogs scored two runs in the first and three in the second to take a 5-0 lead. 
 
SMSU scored a pair of runs in the third, with a Bloemendaal lead-off double, followed by Russell reaching on an error to score Bloemendaal and an Emily Tatur groundout to score Russell bringing bring the Mustangs within three at 5-2. 
 
After getting a run back in the bottom of the inning, the Bulldogs would tack on five more runs in the fourth inning to close the scoring.
 
Karlie Miller (6-13) received the loss, giving up 11 runs (eight earned) on 12 hits and five walks while picking up a strikeout.
 
The Mustangs would muster four hits, with Russell picking up another multi-hit game to lead the offense. 
 
SMSU returns home on Thursday, hosting Augustana at Mustang Field for a doubleheader beginning at 2 p.m.