OMAHA, Neb. – The Omaha softball team posted a split in a doubleheader with North Dakota State on Saturday afternoon at Westside Field at Westbrook, losing 3-1 in the opener before winning 6-0 in game two.
Omaha owns a 16-14 overall record and a 4-1 Summit League mark. North Dakota State stands at 24-6 overall and 4-1 in league play.
The two teams conclude the series on Sunday at 11:00 a.m.
NDSU 3, Omaha 1
NDSU took advantage of three Omaha errors and pitcher Krista Menke allowed only four hits while striking out 12 batters to finish with the win.
North Dakota State strung together four hits in the top of the second inning to take a 1-0 lead.
Omaha tied the game in the bottom of the fourth, 1-1. Catcher Campbell Ditto opened the inning with a walk. After an out, Ditto stole second and came around to score on a Lizzie Noble single.
A pair of fielding miscues led to a run for the Bison in the top of the sixth inning. The Mavericks retired the first batter of the inning before two errors and a single through the left side put NDSU back on top, 2-1.
North Dakota State tacked on an insurance run in the top of the seventh. Omaha retired the first two batters of the inning, before two hits and an error made the score 3-1 in favor of the Bison.
Omaha mounted a threat in the bottom of the seventh inning. Tara Trede hit a one-out double and advanced to third on an Allie Mathewson single up the middle. NDSU's Menke got out of the jam by striking out the next two UNO batters to preserve the win.
Omaha's Kat Barrow (7-5) allowed one earned run on nine hits with two walks and five strikeouts.
Trede went 1-for-2 at the plate with a double and walk. Noble was 1-for-3 with an RBI, while Mathewson went 1-for-4. Freshman Megan May went 1-for-2 in the opener.
Omaha 6, NDSU 0
Lizzie Noble went 3-for-3 with a three-run home run to lead Omaha to victory in the second game.
Omaha's Jaylee Hinrichs and NDSU's Jacquelyn Sertic were locked in a pitchers dual until the bottom of the fifth inning. Noble got things started for Omaha with a one-out single. Megan May laced a double to centerfield to drive in Noble. Nicole Warren singled up the middle and advanced to second on an error in the outfield. On the same play, Kylie Schwarting who pinch ran for May, came around to score giving the Mavs the lead, 2-0.
Omaha tacked on four insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth. Tonya Peterson and Campbell Ditto opened the inning with back-to-back singles. Noble cleared the bases with a three-run shot to left field. Following a strike out, Nicole Warren hit a solo shot off the scoreboard netting to increase the Mavericks lead, 6-0.
Warren went 2-for-3 including a solo home run in the sixth and added two RBI. Ditto and Peterson each had singles, while May had a double in the win.
Hinrichs (7-4) tossed 7.0 innings with no runs on four hits, a walks, and nine strikeouts.
