Bemidji, Minn. --- The #18 Minnesota State softball shut down the Bemidji State Beavers twice with a pair of shutout victories, 4-0 and 6-0, Saturday afternoon at the BSU Softball Field. With the wins, Minnesota State moves to 26-7 (15-5 NSIC) on the season while Beavers drop to 9-25 (5-15 NSIC).


Game 1

Mackenzie Ward (15-3) started the game for the Mavericks and pitched a complete game one-hit shutout while striking out 19 of 24 batters faced. Ward's 19 strikeouts in a game is a new career best and also makes her the first Maverick to strike out 19 batters in a seven-inning game since Coley Ries accomplished the feat against Lewis University during the 2017 season. Kaidron McClafferty (0-7) started for the Beavers and took the loss allowing four runs on 10 hits while pitching the complete game.
 
The Mavericks capitalized, after Carly Esselman was hit by a pitch and stole second base, when Sydney Nielsen hit a single over the pitcher's glove that scored Esselman.
 
Minnesota State added a second run in the top of the fourth when Madi Newman successfully executed a squeeze play to bring Kacy Nickerson home from third. Newman brought home another run in the sixth inning when she hit a single to right field that brought Hailey Forshee home.
 
In the top of the seventh, Hannah McCarville capped off the scoring with a two-out single to bring Nielsen home.
 
Ward's no-hit bid was broken up in the bottom of the seventh inning when a pinch-hitting leadoff batter hit a shallow looping single into to right field. Ward however continued her dominance, striking out the side to preserve the shutout.
 
Nielsen and Forshee each went 2-4 in the game while Hannah Hastings finished the game 2-3.
 
Game 2

McKayla Armbruster (9-3) started for Minnesota State and earned the win throwing four innings of scoreless ball, only allowing four hits to go along with six strikeouts. Katie Bracken finished the game for the Mavericks, allowing only a single hit in three innings of work. Stephi Dullum (6-6) started for the Beavers and took the loss allowing six runs, three of them earned, in five innings of work.
 
In the top of the second inning, the Mavericks put the first run on the board when Sydney Nelson hit a single through the center of the infield that scored Hastings.

Minnesota State exploded in the third inning when a string of hits as well as crafty baserunning allowed the Mavericks to put four more runs on the scoreboard to take a 5-0 lead.
 
Nielsen capped off the scoring when she drilled a solo homer, her team leading eighth on the season, over the left field fence.
 
Throughout the game Minnesota State's defense would be tested with the Beavers loading the bases three times with only a single out. Despite these challenges, the Maverick defense kept Bemidji State off the scoreboard all day long as Armbruster struck out a pair of batters to end a threat while also striking out and forcing a pop fly the second time. Bracken also got out of a bases loaded situation in the fifth inning, striking out the final two batters to get out of danger.
 
Nielsen, Richards, McCarville, Hastings and Nelson all finished the game batting 2-4 from the plate as the Mavericks hitting proved consistent throughout the contest.
 
Minnesota State returns to action tomorrow with a road doubleheader against the Minnesota Crookston Golden Eagles with first pitch scheduled for 1:00 p.m., in game one.