ST. PAUL, Minn. – Minot State University hammered out 32 total hits, rallied from a 5-2 deficit in game 1 and completed its first Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference sweep of the season, topping Concordia-St. Paul twice Sunday at Carlander Field.
 
The Beavers (15-26 overall, 4-19) doubled its conference win total on the seasons and won for the third time in its past five games.
 
"I'm proud of how we approached each at bat," said MSU head coach Bill Triplett. "We had an idea of what to do up there. We are getting better."
 
In game 1, MSU trailed 5-2 heading into the sixth inning, but scored four in the sixth and tacked on another in the seventh for insurance to finish off the rally. Kyla Larson (So., OF, Wahiawa, Hawaii) had the big hit as she smoked her second home run of the inning to center field – a three run shot – that tied the game at five. Daniela Carbajal (Fr., INF, San Marcos, Calif.) squeezed home Isis Cabral (Fr., OF, Oxnard, Calif.) later in the inning to give MSU the lead.
 
The cushion was more than enough for Jenn Spencer (Jr., P, Winnipeg, Manitoba) who struck out five batters in three perfect relief innings to earn the win in relief.
 
Larson finished with four hits and five RBIs in the win. Jordan Grant (Jr., CF, Adelanto, Calif.) and Alyssa Cornejo (Jr., P/UTL, Riverside, Calif.) collected three hits apiece, while Rachel Burdette (Jr., UTL, Temecula, Calif.) and Ashley Hill (So., 1B, Mesa, Ariz.) had two hits apiece. Clarissa Ramirez (Jr., P/UTL, Tucson, Ariz.) hit her second home run of the season as the Beavers finished with three in the game.
 
"Kyla Larson had an awesome day," Triplett said. "Cornejo, Hill and Burdette also put together some good at bats. Grant seemed to be on base all day. Thirty-two hits on the day – that was by far our best performance of the season."
 
MSU didn't let up in game 2 as the Beavers banged out 16 more hits and, coupled with four CSP errors, amassed the team's highest run total of the season. Seven different players finished with multiple hits, paced by Grant and Laruen Cowden (Fr., UTL, Moorpark, Calif.), who finished with three apiece. Grant went 6 for 11 on the day with two stolen bases, while Larson finished with eight RBIs.
 
The Beavers scored four runs in the first two innings and added two more in the third to take a 10-1 lead. After CSP (12-30, 6-16) pushed across four in the bottom of the third, the Beavers added another in the fourth and three more in the seventh to pull away.
 
Along with Cowden and Grant, Burdette, Larson, Cabral and Cornejo all finished with two hits. Cornejo drove in four, Larson three and Hill two for MSU.
 
Spencer pitched well enough for her second win on the day, going six innings, allowing six hits and five runs, while striking out two. She improved to 6-11 on the season.
 
MSU stays on the road with a midweek game at Bemidji State Wednesday before finishing the regular season at home Saturday and Sunday.
 
About Minot State
Minot State University is a member of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) and NCAA Division II offering 14 men's and women's varsity intercollegiate athletics programs. The NSIC is a premier NCAA DII, 16-member conference featuring teams in North Dakota, South Dakota, Minnesota, Nebraska and Iowa. The Beavers are the only public NCAA Division II institution in the state of North Dakota.