The University of Minnesota Duluth saw its nine-game winning streak come to a close in a pitchers' duel against the University of Mary on Saturday afternoon, but the Bulldog offense bounced back for a game two victory and a split of the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference doubleheader in Bismarck, North Dakota.

UMD (26-12, 19-8 NSIC) mustered just two hits a game after plating 21 runs last Thursday afternoon, falling 2-1 thanks to a complete game effort by Marauders freshman starter Jake Johnson, who racked up eight strikeouts. The Bulldogs offense came back to life in game two while their pitching staff combined for a 7-0 shutout to defeat U-Mary (8-34, 6-22 NSIC) in game two.

COVERING THE BASE
• Freshman left-hander Marcus Frederickson took the hard-luck loss in game one, tossing 4.2 innings before being relieved by junior righty Matt Mattiacci, who continued his string of dominance with one strikeout in 1.1 hitless innings. Junior right-hander Austin Vaske took the hill in game two, tossing six shutout innings, striking out five while scattering four hits and four walks on his afternoon.
• Junior third baseman Alex Wojciechowski went just 1-for-8 on the day, but the one marked his eighth home run of the season, a two-run shot. Junior outfielder Josh Denisen was 2-for-5 with a solo home run and two runs scored. Sophomore outfielder Grant Farley and junior outfielder Grant Farley also had a pair of hits on the day, while sophomore shortstop Kyle Hoffman led UMD with a 2-for-4 game two and two RBIs.

U-Mary plated the game's first run on a two-out double steal, seeing freshman third baseman Ethan Miede come home while the Bulldogs tried to catch junior designated hitter Sean Hennen at second. UMD came back with a run in the top of the fifth with Heck lifting a double and coming around on a single by Farley, the Bulldogs' two hits of the afternoon. Johnson went the distance, walking four and collecting the aforementioned eight strikeouts.

UMD jumped ahead early in game two as Wojciechowski lifted a two-run homer as part of a three-run first inning, scoring Denisen who made his return to the starting line-up. Denisen would launch his own longball in the second inning, giving the Bulldogs and Vaske a 4-0 cushion. Hoffman drove in his runs in both the sixth and seventh innings, bringing his total to eight in his past two games. UMD scored a pair of runs thanks to a pair of Marauder fielding errors in the game, and the pitching did the rest, with senior righty Michael Stocke, junior southpaw Kyle Fritz, and sophomore right-hander Colton Sinning closing out the shutout for Vaske.

UP NEXT
UMD and U-Mary will conclude their four-game set tomorrow in Bismarck, North Dakota. First pitch is set for 12:00 p.m.