Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 ABERDEEN, S.D. --- It took the Minnesota State softball team only 11 innings to earn a pair of conference wins over MSU Moorhead, downing the Dragons 14-0 in five innings in the first of two games and 10-2 in six innings in the twinbill's finale.

With the win, the Mavericks improve their winning-streak to 18 games and improve to 28-6 overall and 12-0 in NSIC action, while the Dragons slip to 7-14 overall and 3-9 on the circuit. Head coach Lori Meyer now sits just five wins away from reaching 1,000 career wins.

The 18-game streak tied the longest winning-streak since the 2008 season. The longest winning-streak in program history came in 1987, when the Mavericks won 23-straight.
MSU got things rolling in the first contest of the day as it downed MSU Moorhead 14-0, behind a one-hit performance from freshman pitcher Coley Ries, her second-straight one-hit game.

The Maverick seniors got things rolling in the first outing of the day as Samantha Holien reached on an error and Lindsay Erickson singled before they were both batted in by an two RBI single from Anna Cole, giving MSU an early 2-0 lead.

MSU added six runs on five hits with two MSU Moorhead errors in the top of the second inning pushing its lead to 8-0 after the top of the second inning. Sophomores Abby Whritenour, Tatum Klein and Karli DesLauries all made their way across the dish, in addition to Cole, Erickson and fellow senior Kelly Wood.

With two outs in the top of the third inning, Klein reached on an error before freshman Molly Sager posted her first collegiate home run scoring Klein and herself pushing the Maverick lead to 10-0.

In the bottom of the fourth inning, Ries allowed a single, her first allowed hit of the game, extinguishing the hopes of a perfect game. Ries did record three strike outs in the inning, however.

The Mavericks posted an additional four runs on five hits and left two runners stranded in the top of the fifth inning. Sophomore Emily Bransky, Whritenour, DesLauries and junior Chelsea Riordan all added runs in the final offensive half inning for MSU, pushing its lead to 14-0, a deficit the Dragons were unable to overcome.

Ries went four innings allowing only one hit, while striking out eight batters and not allowing a walk. With the win, the Eagle Lake, Minn., native improved to 13-2 overall and earned her fifth shutout of the season. Freshman Samantha Buhmann saw one inning of relief work and did not allow a hit, run or walk.

A total of nine Maverick batters recorded an RBI in the contest, Sager, Erickson, Cole and DesLauries each posted two RBI in the contest.

Collectively, MSU posted 14 runs on 13 hits with four Dragon errors in the first game of the day.

In game two of the twinbill, it was the Dragons who struck first, by way of a two-run home run off the bat of Brittany York, who was the only MSUM athlete to solve Ries in the first game of the day.

The Mavericks responded with four runs on five hits with one Dragon error and left one runner stranded in the top of the third inning, gaining a 4-2 lead. DesLauries, Klein, Erickson and Holien all scored runs in the third inning.

DesLauries and Whritenour each added runs in the top of the fourth with RBI credited to Holien and Erickson, pushing the Maverick lead to 6-2 heading into the bottom of the fourth inning.

MSU added an additional four runs in the top of the sixth inning, pushing the score to 10-2 putting itself in position to eight-run rule the Dragons for the second-straight game. Holien, Erickson, Wood and freshman Dana Mogren all crossed dish in the offensive side of the sixth inning. junior pitcher Brittany Lauterbach pitched a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the sixth inning earning her 13th win of the season.

The Mavericks first three batters, Holien, Erickson and Cole all posted two RBI with Holien leading the way posting two runs on two hits in four at bats with two RBI.
Lauterbach improved with 13-4 overall allowing two runs on four hits with nine strikeouts and no walks.

MSU returns to action Wednesday, as it hosts Upper Iowa University at the MSU Softball Diamond, opening pitch is slated for 2:00 p.m.