CLERMONT, Fla. – The Bemidji State University softball pitching staff dominated play on Thursday, March 16 as the Beavers (16-5) defeated Southern Connecticut State University 5-0 and Merrimack University, 2-0.

The Beavers allowed just one hit over both games as senior Jenna Massingill threw her second consecutive one-hitter and junior Jessica Yost pitched a no-hitter against Merrimack.

Bemidji State 5, So. Connecticut State 0

The Beavers used a quick start and the strength of its starting pitcher, Massingill, to shutout the Owls in the first action of the day.

BSU scored all five runs of the game in the first inning after Yost started the scoring with a RBI single. After the Beavers added another run on an Owl error, Angie Roberts hit her first triple of the season that scored two. Bemidji State then scored the final run when Makayla Pagel drove in Roberts off of a hard hit ball to third.

From then on the Beavers relied their senior pitcher to earn the win. Massingill was up to the task and sat down 20-of-22 batters that she faced. She allowed just two walks and one hit in the game and struck out five to earn her fourth win of the season and is now 4-2 on the season.

Roberts led the Beavers at the plate by going 1-for-3 with a triple and two RBI.

Merrimack 0, Bemidji State 2

Yost got to a quick start against Warriors by striking out the first three batters of the game and by the end of the third inning she allowed just two base runners. Yost faced trouble in the fourth after a couple errors put runners on second and third with only one out. However, Yost wasn’t fazed and struck out the next batter and forced a popup for the final out of the inning.

The Beavers then rallied behind their starting pitcher at the plate and in the bottom of the fourth and runners on the corners, freshman Brooke Phillips drove in Erin Deters for the first run of the game. Bemidji State extended its lead to 2-0 in the fifth when Lyndsey Peterson hit a solo home run.

After the jam in the fourth, Yost allowed just one base runner in the remaining innings after a walk in fifth. With only seven at bats remaining for the Warriors, she remained strong in the circle and struck out four to earn the 2-0 victory and her first seven inning, no-hitter of her career. Yost ended the game with 12 strikeouts and allowed just three walks.

With the win, Yost improves her record to 11-0 on the season and is the fifth time this season she has allowed one hit or fewer.

Bemidji State will play the final games of its trip to Clermont, Fla., tomorrow and faces Saint Michael’s College and Concordia-Ann Arbo University tomorrow at noon and 4 p.m., respectively.

For more information on the Bemidji State University softball program, follow the Beavers on Twitter (@Beaver_Softball or @BSUBeavers) or like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers).

Nestled in Northern Minnesota’s wooded region and located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, Bemidji State University sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men’s and women’s hockey membership in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).

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