Box Score 1 | Box Score 2
WINONA, Minn. – The Minnesota State University Moorhead softball team battled Winona State tough in the second game of a doubleheader before falling, 2-0 in action at Alumni Field in Winona, Minn.. The win helped the Warriors complete a sweep on the day as they captured the first game by a 14-4 score.
MSUM fell to 8-17 overall and 4-12 in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference with the losses while Winona State, which was one of the preseason favorites in the NSIC along with Minnesota State, Mankato, improved to 26-6 overall and 9-3 in the league.

The Dragons battled tough in the second game against the Warriors, who have been ranked as high as 17th in the nation this season. The score was deadlocked at 0-0 for five innings before Winona State scored twice in the bottom of the sixth to take a 2-0 lead on its way to the win.

"We played a good second game against one of the top teams in our league," MSUM head coach Kelsey Fehl said. "Kristen Nordby pitched well and our defense was very good. We just couldn't find a way to score any runs. We are giving ourselves chances but need to get that big hit with runners on."

Junior center fielder Mollie Annen was 2-for-3 for the Dragons, while junior catcher Brittany York – who is hitting .435 in the Dragons' last eight games – was 1-for-2. The Dragons left five runners on base in the game.

Sophomore Kristen Nordby was strong again on the mound for MSUM. She allowed just two earned runs in six innings, striking out two while walking none. She allowed seven hits.

In the opening game, MSUM was led by Nordby, who was 2-for-2 with an RBI while junior shortstop Taylor Huss was 2-for-3 with a run scored. York was 1-for-3 with a two-run homer, while sophomore pitcher Morgan Nybo was 1-for-3 with an RBI. Freshman first baseman Lauren Meeker was 2-for-3, while junior center fielder Mollie Annen and junior right fielder Heather Tice each had hits and scored a run.

Nybo was tagged with the loss after giving up 11 earned runs in five innings. She gave up 13 hits and walked five while striking out two.

Winona State led 3-0 after scoring three times in the bottom of the first. The Dragons came back to tie the game at 3-3 in the top of the third. With one out, Annen singled, and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by Tice. York drilled her third homer of the week, a two-run shot, to bring MSUM within 3-2.

Huss then singled, and Nybo followed with a single. Nordby singled down the right-field line to score Huss, tying the game at 3-3.

Winona State scored seven unanswered runs to build the lead to 10-3. In the fifth, Tice reached on an error to lead off the inning and moved to second on the play. One out later, Huss singled to move Tice to third, and Tice would score on Nybo's fielder's choice to bring MSUM within 8-4. The Dragons got no closer, however, as Winona won the game in the sixth with four runs.

MSUM wraps up the weekend on Saturday at Upper Iowa. The doubleheader begins at noon in Fayette, Iowa.