Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 CLERMONT, Fla. – Minot State University rolled to a blowout win and then rode the arm of Mindy Lorimor (Jr., P, Thurman, Iowa) to its third-straight two-game sweep and the Beavers seventh straight win overall in NCAA Division II softball at the National Training Center Tournament played at the NTC Softball Complex.

The Beavers (10-5 overall) pounded out 19 hits in a 14-1 win over Saint Michael's College in game 1 and then topped Slippery Rock University 3-0 behind a dazzling 11-strikeout performance from Lorimor in game 2. The Beavers have won all six games against teams in Florida, winning by an combined 45-12.

"We've made some big strides toward becoming a team that will be hard to beat," said MISU head coach Bill Triplett. "I'm pretty happy with our performances the last two days."

Game 1 was all Minot State as the Beavers scored runs in all four innings they batted, getting three in the first as Jen Dixon (Sr., P/OF, Brandon, Manitoba) swatted a two run home run. Dixon went 1-for-1 with three RBIs and three walks.

"Jen went deep in the first to put us up and we got on a serious roll after that," Triplett said. We banged out 19 hits in just five innings."

Six Beavers ended the game with multiple hits, paced by Ali Cygan's (Jr., SS, Bozeman, Mont.) perfect 4-for-4 performance with two runs scored and driving in two. Jordan Grant (Fr., CF, Adelnato, Calif.) went 3-for-4 with two runs scored, Melissa Bell (Jr., C, Belgrade, Mont.) homered and went 2-for-3 and scored three runs, while Katie Backes (Sr., UTL, Minot, N.D.) drove in four runs with two hits.

"Ali had four hits and that was huge considering they walked Dixon her other three at bats and Cygan follows Dixon in our order. Ali really made them pay for pitching around Jen," said Triplett. "All the hitting overshadowed Jen's best outing thus far in the circle. She faced nine batters and retired all nine."

Dixon moved to 3-1 on the season as she was perfect over three innings with three strikeouts. Jenn Spencer (Fr., P/1B, Winnipeg, Manitoba) came on to finish the final two innings, giving up one run and two hits while striking out three.

Against Slippery Rock, Lorimor set the tone early with three strikeouts in the first two innings and then got stingier to hit, striking out seven in the final four innings. She set down the side in the fourth to get out of a jam and had at least two strikeouts in four innings. The 11 Ks is a career-high for Lorimor.

"This was Lorimor's best performance to date," Triplett said. "Melissa Bell got the big hit for us giving us a lead in the second inning and that was all Mindy needed. She was really sharp. Defensively, we played error free softball which was good to see."
knocked in two with a two-out single and then scored on a passed ball to spot MISU to a 3-0 lead in the second. The Beavers were out-hit by SRU 8-7, but earned their second shutout of the season.

Grant finished with two hits and scored a run, while Sarah Nicks (Fr., UTL, Grossmont, Calif.) went 1-for-1 and scored a run.
Minot State is off Monday and will resume double-headers Tuesday and Wednesday to finish the tournament. MISU takes on New York Institute of Technology and Kutztown University Tuesday.