WEST ST. PAUL, Minn. –  Sophomore pitcher Aryka Knoche played a big part in the Golden Bear's split with Minnesota Duluth on Friday afternoon, as she threw a three-hitter in game one and had two extra-base hits on the day, driving in three runs. Concordia-St. Paul cruised to a 9-1 five-inning win in the first game, before dropping game two by a score of 11-5.
 
GAME 1: Concordia-St. Paul 9, Minnesota Duluth 1
Knoche threw a three-hitter, while striking out a season-high 11 batters to lead the Bears to a 9-1 victory in game one of the doubleheader. Concordia supported Knoche, as seven different Golden Bears recorded at least one hit, outhitting their opponents 10-3 throughout the game.
 
Knoche was also an offensive threat, hitting a triple in the bottom of the first, driving in two runs. Junior Carlie Hart remained consistent at the plate, recording her fifth straight game with two or more hits, singling in the third and fifth innings while also recording an RBI. Joining Hart with multiple hits in the game were junior Justine Schattner and sophomore Lily Langevin, who each went 2-3. Schattner also drew a walk and drove in the final run in the bottom of the fifth to secure the five-inning win.
 
The Bulldogs got on the board first, as senior Hannah Schmoll, who had two of the team's three hits, scored on a single from shortstop Becky Smith in the first inning. The Bears answered in the bottom of the inning, scoring four runs on two hits while taking advantage of three walks and a UMD error.
 
The Bears tacked on three more runs in the second. Langevin started the rally with a single and a stolen base. Schattner and senior Haley Schanks also singled, getting Langevin across. Thompson scored the last run of the inning on a Duluth error.
 
CSP would get their final two runs in the fifth, stretching their lead to 9-1, ending the game in five innings. Freshman Amanda Parsons started the inning with a single. Kris McIntyre came in as a pinch runner and stole second, eventually coming around to score on a Hart single. Langevin, who also singled in the inning, scored the game-ending run when Schattner came up with a two-out single to win it.
 
With the win, Knoche improves to 7-6 on the year and with the triple, extends her hit streak to 15 straight games.     
 
GAME 2: Minnesota Duluth 11, Concordia-St. Paul 5
The Bulldogs' offense came alive in the second game, registering 13 hits, while also taking advantage of four walks and three CSP errors, to power their 11-5 victory. The Bears tallied eight hits, with Thompson leading the way going 2-3 with a pair of singles and stealing two bases.
 
Knoche stretched her hit streak to 16 games with a home run, her third of the year, breaking the 0-0 tie in the bottom of the second. Sophomore Hannah Carlson followed that up with a double and freshman Cam Veenbaas drove her in later in the inning on a double to left center.
 
The Bears kept this 2-0 lead until the fourth inning when UMD scored one on a double to deep left center. The defense got out of the inning without any further damage, retiring the next three batters, with sophomore Samantha Sullivan striking out two. The Bulldogs would get another run across in the fifth on a double steal, tying it up at two runs apiece.
 
A three-run home run in the sixth gave Minnesota Duluth a 5-2 lead and they would get one more run in the inning on a two-out single that drove in a runner on second. The Bulldogs extended their lead to nine, 11-2, in the top of the seventh, scoring five runs on four hits, including a grand slam.
 
CSP came up with three hits in the bottom of the seventh, as McIntyre doubled and junior Makenna Giese singled and both scored when Hart hit a three-run home run. This was Hart's third home run of the year, as she leads the Bears with 24 RBIs so far this season. The Bears' rally came up short though, as Duluth took game two 11-5.
 
UP NEXT
To finish this week of conference play, the Bears will travel to the Husky Dome in St. Cloud to take on the Huskies on April 7^th, at 8 a.m. If you are unable to make the trip, St. Cloud State will be providing live stats; check the schedule page for details.