Box Score 1 | Box Score 2  | GameDay Preview

MOORHEAD, Minn. — After surrendering 31 runs in dropping their last six games, the Saint Mary's University of Minnesota fastpitch softball team was in dire need of a pick-me-up.
 
So Ashley Betzold (Farmington, Minn.) picked the Cardinals up, hoisted them on her shoulders, and carried them to a pair of Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference wins over Concordia Saturday afternoon.
 
The freshman right-hander allowed just five hits — and no runs — while striking out 16 in 15 innings of work, as the Cardinals beat the Cobbers 4-0 in the opener and 1-0 in eight innings in the nightcap.
 
"Ashley was definitely the highlight for us today," said SMU coach Jen Miller. "She put the team on her back and carried us. We didn't hit particularly well — especially with runners in scoring position — but we got the job done and came away with a couple big wins."
 
The Cardinals gave Betzold all the run support she would need in the third inning of the opener, scoring twice in the third on RBI singles by Alex Raske (Chicago, Ill.) and Kathi Opsahl (Elk River, Minn.), before plating two more runs in the sixth when Toni Hunsinger (Farmington, Minn.) laced a two-out, two-run single to right to push the SMU lead to 4-0.
 
Betzold allowed just three hits in the opener, while equaling her career high with 10 strikeouts. Opsahl and Micaela Meredith (Bloomington, Minn.) paced SMU's nine-hit Game 1 attack with two hits each.
 
The Cardinals needed to work a little overtime to complete the sweep, waiting until the top of the eighth inning to score the game's only run.
 
Raske laced a one-out triple to center and scored when Concordia centerfielder Mackenzie Jensen misplayed Opsahl's fly ball.
 
And with Betzold on the mound, that one run was more than enough, as the freshman completed her near-perfect day with an eight-inning, six-strikeout, two-hitter.
 
Raske and Sam Borawski (Stickney, Ill.) each collected two hits for the Cardinals, who had 10 hits in the nightcap.
 
SMU (8-10 MIAC, 12-16 overall) are back in action on Sunday, traveling to Rosemount, Minn., for a 2 p.m. MIAC doubleheader against Macalester. The games were originally scheduled to be played in Winona, Minn., but with rain in the forecast, the games have been moved indoors.