Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Winona, MN – The University of Sioux Falls softball team dropped both games of NSIC play on Saturday afternoon to Winona State.
 
Game 1: USF 0, WSU 8
 
The Cougars faced a tough pitcher from the circle in Game 1 as WSU's Pautz threw five innings, striking out 11 USF hitters, surrendering zero walks, hits, and runs on the day.
 
The game was broken open when Winona State brought across five runs on four singles in the bottom of the 2^nd inning. The Warriors hit a sacrifice fly in the 4^th inning to bring across the 5^th run of the game and brought across two more in the bottom of the 5^th on three singles and a double to bring across the 7^th and 8^th runs of the game. The game ended after 5 innings by a score of 8-0.
 
From the circle, Hanna Cress took the loss for the Cougars as she pitched 4 1/3 innings, surrendering 12 hits, and eight runs (seven earned).
 
Game 2: USF 6, WSU 8
 
The Cougars had a back and forth battle against WSU in Game 2 which kept the fans and players on their toes as it was a jam packed game filled with home runs and heart break for the Cougars in the bottom of the 7^th inning.
 
Through one inning of play, the game had remained scoreless and the Cougars struck first in the top of the 2^nd when Damaris Cuevas hit a sacrifice fly bringing across Kait Van Der Zwaag for the first run of the contest. In the bottom of the 3^rd, WSU answered back with a solo home run to tie the game at one run a piece.
 
The Warriors brought another run across the board on another solo shot home run in the bottom of the 4^th inning. The Cougars answered back in the top of the 5^th started by back to back singles by Lexie Swift and Kylan Straight to put immediate pressure on Winona. Kylie Madrid hit into a fielder's choice bringing across pinch runner Danielle Klenke for the Cougars 3^rd run of the game. The Cougars Kait Van Der Zwaag and Reese Holzhueter hit back to back home runs to take the lead by a score of 6-2 for USF.
 
Winona State kept swinging the bat well as they hit two home runs, bringing across 3 runs to bring the score back to 6-5 in USF's favor. In the bottom of the 7^th, the Warriors kept the pressure on as they drew a walk, followed by a sacrifice bunt and a game-winning home run by the Warriors for a final score of 8-6 for Winona State. 
 
The Cougars ended the day with nine hits led by Lexie Swift, Reese Holzhueter, and Emma Barta who each had two apiece. The other hits came from Kylan Straight, Kait Van Der Zwaag, and Damaris Cuevas who had one hit each on the day.
 
From the circle, Kait Van Der Zwaag pitched 5 2/3 inning, surrendering eight hits, 5 runs (3 earned), and striking out two runs. Kennedy Thomas came in for 2/3 of an inning, surrendering one hit, giving up three runs and walking two hitters. 

Up Next
The Cougars are back in action tomorrow when they'll head to Upper Iowa for a doubleheader starting at 12 p.m. and Game 2 to follow. Follow along on the USF Softball twitter and Instagram for updates leading up to the games ahead.