BEMIDJI, Minn. – The University of Sioux Falls Softball Team (9-11, 3-3 NSIC) dropped a pair of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference road games to Bemidji State (7-13, 3-3 NSIC) on Saturday.
With the two losses, USF finished the road trip north with a 2-2 record and a 3-3 overall mark in the NSIC.

USF is 9-11 overall this season and will now travel to Wayne State College on Wednesday, April 7 for a mid-week NSIC doubleheader in Wayne, Neb. It will conclude a six-game road swing for the Cougars.

Breaking down the weekend – USF hit .248 as a team with 19 runs and 31 hits, including seven doubles, and three home runs. USF had homers from Kaitlyn Van Der Zwaag as well as the first of the year for both Damaris Cuevas and Mika Rodriguez, who hit her first at USF and 14^th during her collegiate career. USF's offense was led by Cassie Van Beek who hit .545 with six hits in 11 at bats and three RBI plus a .583 on-base percentage. Shayla Running and Van Der Zwaag hit .333 during the week.

On the mound, USF had a 3.00 earned run average with 47 total strikeouts. Freshman Hanna Cress finished 2-1 with a 1.62 earned run average in four appearances while starting two games. She had two complete games and totaled 31 strikeouts across 17.1 innings and allowed just four earned runs. Van Der Zwaag was 0-1 with a 2.80 earned run average in two starts. She had 16 strikeouts in 10 innings with four earned runs allowed.

Game 1 – BSU 6 USF 3
In the opener of the NSIC DH, USF dropped a 6-3 decision to Bemidji State, which scored twice in the third and sixth innings to build a lead and hold off the Cougars.

Junior Kaitlyn Van Der Zwaag (3-4) took the loss as she allowed seven hits and four earned runs with eight strikeouts and had two walks in throwing 93 pitches. Hanna Cress finished for USF as she threw one inning and allow only an unearned run.

USF's offense, which produced seven hits, was led by senior Cassie Van Beek with two hits and an RBI. Kaitlyn Van Der Zwaag had her second home run of the season. Mika Rodriguez had a hit, RBI and run scored while Frankie Mickelson had a hit and run scored and Kylan Straight had a base hit.

Kyla Damerow (1-6) won her first game of the season as she tossed a complete game. She allowed seven hits and three runs with four strikeouts in throwing 73 pitches.  

BSU scored twice in the first inning as Lexi Derrick and Ashley Herold had run-scoring hits. In the top of the second inning, Van Der Zwaag hit a home run to cut the lead to 2-1.  In the third inning, Van Beek had a run-scoring double to bring home Frankie Mickelson as the Cougars tied the game.  But BSU added two runs in the third inning on RBI by Derrick and Herold. In the sixth inning BSU scored an unearned run for a 6-2 lead. In the seventh inning, Mika Rodriguez hit her 14^th career home run and first at USF as the Cougars drew within 6-3.

Game 2 – BSU 5 USF 3 (8 innings)
USF dropped a 5-3 decision to BSU in game two in eight innings despite another solid outing in the circle from Hanna Cress.

Cress (6-6) allowed seven hits and three earned runs with eight strikeouts and two walks in throwing 100 pitches. Stella Dolan (1-2) earned the victory as she pitched the final five innings and did not allow a hit. Lexi Derrick had a two-run walk off home run in the bottom of the eighth inning. She had three hits and three RBI.

USF's offense was led by Kaitlyn Van Der Zwaag who had who hits and an RBI. Lexie Swift had a double and RBI while Kylie Madrid had a base hit and RBI. Also with hits was Rachel Klassen, who had a run scored, and Mika Rodriguez, who had a single.

USF scored three runs on four hits in the third inning. After Frankie Mickelson was hit by a pitched she was sacrificed to second. After a bunt single from Rachel Klassen, Mickelson scored on an RBI single from Madrid. Van Der Zwaag's run-scoring hit plated Klassen. Then Swift hit an RBI double to left center which scored Damaris Cuevas.