Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minot State University softball was able to muster one rally, but the Beavers couldn't get a second one going as they split a pair of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference games with Concordia-St. Paul Monday at Carlander Field.

The Beavers (24-11 overall, 11-6 NSIC) rallied in game 1 with two runs in each of the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to earn a 6-4 win, but the Beavers allowed five runs in the second inning and couldn't recover in game 2 as CSP (13-25, 8-10) win 9-5 in game 2.

"We had a nice comeback in the first game, some big hits to get us back and get the win," said MISU head coach Bill Triplett. "We hit the ball hard in game 2 to try to make another comeback, but it wasn't to be."

In game 1, MISU trailed the Golden Bears 3-0 after four innings before the rally. Jen Dixon (Sr., OF/P, Brandon, Manitoba) got things going with a solo home run to center to start the fifth inning. Melissa Bell (Jr., C, Belgrade, Mont.) and Ali Cygan (Jr., SS, Bozeman, Mont.) smacked back-to-back doubles in the inning as Cygan drove in Bell.

Minot State got two more in the sixth as Rachel Burdette (Fr., P/UTL, Temecula, Calif.) and Leyna Downey (Jr., P/1B, Missoula, Mont.) each drove in a run after Stacy Fournier (Sr., 3B, Langley, British Columbia) started with a single and moved over on a double by Alyssa Cornejo (Fr., P/2B, Riverside, Calif.).

Finally, Fournier plated two with a big one-out single in the seventh to score Darlene Truong (Jr., C, Escondido, Calif.) and Bell to give the Beavers the win.

After giving up runs in the second, fourth and fifth innings, MISU starter Mindy Lorimor (Jr., P, Thurman, Iowa) settled down to blank the Golden Bears in the final two innings for her 17th win of the season.

"We battled and didn't give up, so I'm happy with that. I'm happy overall with where we are," Triplett said. "It was encouraging to see us battle on the road. We have a chance to come home with a split (of the six games) and while that wasn't what we wanted when we started, it's still pretty big for us if we can stay in the top five or six."

Game 2 ended up boiling down to a big second inning for CSP. The Golden Bears sent 11 players to plate and got RBIs from four different players to take a 6-0 lead. Minot State tried to get back in the game, getting three in the fourth and single runs in the third and fifth, but the Golden Bears continued to tack on runs. CSP got a run in the third, fourth and fifth innings to hold off Minot State.

Dixon hit another solo home run giving her two on the day and 11 on the season and drove two for her 35th RBI of the season in the loss. Truong had three hits in game 2 and two in game 1 for a five-hit day. Katie Backes (Sr., UTL, Minot, N.D.) went 3-for-4 in game 2 and Burdette, Fournier and Bell had one game with multiple hits in the series.

The two teams combined for 22 hits in game 1 and 28 hits in game 2. MISU finished with 25 hits in the series, but stranded 18 runners total.

"We were shorthanded down here this weekend with a couple injuries and it will be tough with six in a row and having the games pushed back," Triplett said. "But Jenn (Jenn Spencer, Fr., P/1B, Winnipeg, Manitoba) ate up some innings for us today and did a  great job. That will help tomorrow."

The Beavers have one more series on the road trip, playing at Minnesota State University Moorhead Tuesday.