Rosemont, Ill.- The University of Minnesota Duluth softball team broke even on its final day in Rosemont as part of the Lewis Dome Invitational on Saturday, defeating tournament-host Lewis 4-0 before losing to Saginaw Valley State 2-1. The Bulldogs officially close their non-conference slate with a 14-5 record. 

UMD's bats were hot in this one from the very beginning- it was just snakebitten in the runs arena. The Bulldogs sat with the bases loaded and just one out in the top of the second, but those runners were ultimately stranded. It was a similar story in the next inning, when runners on second and third ended up being left on base. The Bulldogs were clearly knocking on the door- they just needed a way to actually get in.

And that came courtesy of a Kendal Jenkins single in the top of the fourth, one that brought Nicole Schmitt home to give UMD the first lead of the day at 1-0. A fourth frame sealed shut by the Bulldog defense through a double play set the stage for UMD to double its lead in the top of the fifth. This time, it was Sidney Zavoral that drove home Corrie Weise to make it 2-0. 

Allyssa Williams would come in in relief to start the fifth after an impressive outing by Allison Luoma and immediately make her presence felt in this one. The freshman put together a 1-2-3 inning that maintained UMD's 2-0 lead heading into the sixth. There, the Bulldogs would tack on yet another run, this one by way of a Weise single that scored Cora Meier.

But in the bottom of the sixth, UMD found itself in quite the pickle. With no outs, the bases were juiced for the Flyers, who seemed poised to do some damage in the inning. Not so fast- three quick outs from Williams kept the Bulldogs' shutout alive for yet another inning. And in the bottom of the seventh, Williams would leave little doubt that the runless effort would survive in perpetuity- another 1-2-3 effort from the freshman sealed the deal on a 3-0 victory for UMD.

Williams had been strong in three innings of relief for the Bulldogs, allowing just a single hit and one walk through 11 batters faced. But it'd been Luoma that had set the framework for the day with four innings of just a single hit through 13 batters.

Offensively, it was truly a team effort for UMD in this one. Four different Bulldogs went 2-3 from the plate against the Flyers, those being Bender, Schmitt, Weise and Zavoral. As a unit, UMD outhit Lewis 11-2 across the game. 

An initial glance at the stats from UMD's second game of the day against Saginaw Valley State seems to tell a similar story. The Bulldogs' bats didn't land double-digits against the Cardinals, but they did outhit SVSU 5-2. Ultimately though, UMD still ended up dropping a 2-1 contest. The vice is easy to identify: walks. Three base on ball scenarios through four batters to open the bottom of the second set the stage for the Cardinals to eventually score the first two runs of the game. Each of those proved absolutely pivotal, both in the long and short term. Right away, they helped to maintain a SVSU lead after Weise would smack her second homer of the season in the top of the third to make it 2-1 Cardinals. And ultimately, that's exactly where the score would sit by the end of the seventh, SVSU securing the victory. 

Mady Stariha had put up a valiant pitching effort through 3.2 innings after coming in in relief, including 1-2-3 outings in the bottom of the fourth and fifth innings. Ultimately, though, SVSU's Alyssa Muench was able to hold her ER total to just one through a complete game of a performance to cap things off for the Cardinals. 

ANSWERS FROM ANDERSON

One name among many that stood out in UMD's win against Lewis on Saturday? Luoma. 

The sophomore pitcher's new to the scene for the Bulldogs this season, having spent a successful freshman campaign with UW-Superior as a Yellowjacket. The sample size is still small- 12 innings across five appearances- but Luoma's numbers have been notable all the same. The Iron River, Wis. native's allowed just six hits in that time all while letting up exactly zero runs. Against the Flyers, Luoma saw the culmination of these efforts in the form of her first credited DII victory. 

To help celebrate the occasion, UMD head coach Lynn Anderson had nothing but good things to say about Luoma- both as a player and a person.

"Allison has been a great addition to our program," Anderson said. "We're happy to have her as a Bulldog, and she fits in tremendously well with our pitching staff, team and overall culture. She's very humble but works hard and competes."

Luoma's been part of an overall pitching staff that's found strong success for UMD across what's already been 19 games this season- that's something the Bulldogs will hope to see continue into in-conference play. 

And while UMD's offense has often impressed so far, the scary thing is, according to Anderson, it can get even better. 

"We need to be more consistent at the plate with our approaches, mentality and skill-wise, and put the ball in play better with runners in scoring position," Anderson said. "That's important moving forward, so during this break in games we're focusing back in on the foundational pieces of the process, and we'll be ready for our next games."

UP NEXT

A successful non-conference outing is now in the rear-view for UMD, but NSIC play still sits quite far away in the front window. The Bulldogs don't kick off conference action until a trip out to St. Cloud for a double header against the Huskies on Tuesday, March 28. Those games will take place at 1:00 p.m. and 3:00 p.m.