MINOT, N.D. -- Sophomore
Julia Suchan went 5-for-6 and drove in five runs leading Minot State to a doubleheader sweep of Providence on Monday in the Air-Supported Dome at Herb Parker Stadium. The Beavers won the opener 8-7 and completed the sweep with a 14-5 victory in game two.
Minot State improved its overall record to 10-2 with the sweep and extended its current winning streak to nine straight games. It marks the Beavers longest winning streak since winning 10 straight in 2014.
Suchan, who is batting .488 on the season, had a double and a triple in game one and added her first home run of the season in game two and scored a total of five runs in the two games.
Tori Zimmermann and
Isis Cabral had four hits each in the doubleheader, while
Ashley Hill picked up three hits.
Lauren Cowden,
Kyla Larson,
Skyla Neubauer and
Haley Hernandez each recorded two hits for the Beavers.
Laura Mendez and
Kylie Patrick both pitched a complete game to pick up wins. Mendez allowed six earned runs in her 7.0 innings and struck out four to improve to 4-1 on the season, while Patrick permitted four earned runs and struck out two in raising her record to 6-1 on the year.
Minot State, which hit five triples in the two games, spotted the Argonauts an early 3-0 lead but bounced back with a five-run second inning to take the lead for good.
Hill led off the second inning with a double and scored when Larson reached on an error three batters later. Another Providence error allowed Hernandez, who had walked, to score the Beavers second run of the game.
Suchan then ripped a triple to left that scored
Sami Jo Henry and Larson to tie the game at 4-4. Cabral followed with another triple to bring home Suchan and put the Beavers in front 5-4.
Minot State tacked on a pair of runs in the bottom of the third inning to extend the lead to 7-4. Hernandez tripled to left which scored pinch-runner
Melissa Estrada and Larson hit a sacrifice fly to center to bring home Hernandez.
Providence, which dropped to 2-3 on the season, scored three runs in the top of the fourth inning and tied the game at 7-7 with a run in the top of the sixth inning.
Minot State regained the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning. Suchan reached on an infield single and moved to third on a double by Cabral. Zimmermann plated Suchan with what proved to be the winning run with an RBI groundout.
Minot State took a 1-0 lead against the Argonauts in game two when Zimmermann hit an RBI single to right that scored Cowden. Providence responded with a two-run homer by Kylie Gonzales to take a 2-1 lead after the first inning.
Minot State then scored three runs in the second inning and seven runs in the top of the third inning to take an 11-2 lead.
Cowden ripped a triple in the second inning to score Camille Green who had reached on a fielder's choice and Suchan followed with a two-run homer giving the Beavers a 4-2 lead.
Zimmermann had two RBIs, while Cowden and Hill each had an RBI during the seven-run top of the third inning.
The Beavers pushed the lead to 12-2 in the fourth inning when Larson tripled to right center to score Neubauer who had doubled to lead off the inning.
Providence rallied with three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning, but the Beavers scored two runs in the top of the sixth inning to close out the game.
Minot State will return to action on Feb. 24-25 when it hosts Carroll and Minnesota Crookston for a tournament in the Air-Supported Dome.
