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WINONA, Minn. — In the first game of their Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader against Augsburg, the Saint Mary's University fastpitch softball team could do no wrong, banging out 13 hits and scoring 12 runs en route to a 12-4, five-inning victory.

In the second game of the twinbill, however, the Cardinals could do no right, as Augsburg pitcher Kylee Persing — making her first collegiate start — limited SMU to just two hits and allowed just an unearned run in the seventh inning in hurling the Auggies to a 5-1 victory and a split at the SMU Field.

“It was certainly a tale of two games,” said SMU coach Jen Miller, whose team moved to 7-7 in the MIAC and 15-11 overall with the split. “We did everything right in the first game — got good pitching, hit the ball well and did a nice job in the field. And then in the second game, we couldn't do anything right.

“It's disappointing, because after watching us swing the bats in the first game, I expect more of the same in the second.”

Persing, however, had other ideas, as the freshman right-hander allowed just a Kellie Simons (Richfield, Minn.) double in the third and a Mallory Betzold (Farmington, Minn.) single in the sixth, before getting relief help in the seventh in posting her first win of the year.

While Persing was doing her thing — allowing just five balls to reach the outfield — the Auggies were feasting on SMU pitching, collecting 14 hits, while scoring single runs in the first and second, adding two more in the fourth, and pushing their lead to 5-0 with another run in the sixth. SMU threatened in the seventh, loading the bases with one out — thanks in part to a pair of Auggie errors — but could only manage an unearned run.

SMU's nonexistent offensive showing in Game 2 was in stark contrast to the Cardinals' performance in the opener, as they scored two or more runs in four of the five innings — including two runs in the first, three in both the second and third, nad four more in the fifth.

Cassie Otte (Randolph, Minn.) led the way for SMU, going 4-for-4 with a pair of RBIs and two runs scored. Nicole Olson (New Brighton, Minn.) went 3-for-4 with two RBIs while Simons was 2-for-3 and Katy Gannon (Roselle, Ill.) drove in four rns.

“We needed Game 2 to be more like the first game,” said Miller, whose team continues its busy week on Saturday, traveling to St. Catherine for a key conference doubleheader against the Wildcats. “It's kind of hard to imagine us going from 13 hits to two, but that's what we did.

“The consistency just wasn't there — and at this stage of the season, you can't afford to be as inconsistent (at the plate) as we were today.”