Box Score

ROCHESTER, Minn. – Shelby Bloemendaal tossed a complete game allowing one run with four strikeouts while scattering eight hits to lead No. 7 seed Southwest Minnesota State to a 4-1 victory over No. 10 seed Northern State in the first round of the 10-team double elimination Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Softball Tournament played at the RYFSA Complex.
 
SMSU will now advance to the quarterfinals to face No. 2 seed Minnesota State at 2 p.m. MSU, which defeated SMSU twice last Saturday in Mankato, is ranked No. 17 in this week's NFCA Top 25 poll.
 
Bloemendaal (9-7) held a shutout until the seventh in tossing her team-leading 11 complete game of the season.
 
SMSU, which improves to 27-18 overall, had six hits in the win with Jillian Noel leading the way with two. Emma Grote, Madison Krog, Kaylee Hentges and Makenna Waldow each had one hit for the Mustangs.
 
SMSU opened the scoring in the home half of the first as Grote reached on a one-out infield single and scored moments later as Kali Tomlinson ripped a ground ball that was misplayed by the NSU shortstop to allow Grote to score all the way from first.
 
SMSU added to the lead in the second with Noel ripping a lead-off single. Pinch runner Lauren Klein moved to second on a passed ball and moments later advanced to third on a sac bunt by Hentges. With two outs, SMSU took advantage of another NSU miscue as Klein sprinted home on passed ball to give the Mustangs a 2-0 lead.
 
The score remained 2-0 until the sixth when the Mustangs added big insurance runs. Krog started the rally with a double and was replaced at second by pinch-runner Molly Bull. Lileya Kebos followed with a perfect sac bunt and on the play the throw got away from the NSU first baseman to allow Kebos to reach and score Bull. After a ground out moved Kebos to second, Hentges ripped a run-scoring double to right field to push the advantage to 4-0.
 
NSU (22-19), which left a runner on base in six of seven innings, finally broke through with a run in the seventh on a lead-off double and RBI single, but Bloemendaal retired the next three batters to secure the victory.