Alex Eisen/MDN The Minot State softball team huddles up for a mound visit Sunday afternoon against Minnesota Crookston inside the bubble at Herb Parker Stadium.

The Minot State softball team completed the final day of the second Air-Supported Dome Invitational this season with a split.

Freshman pitcher Zoya Robbins tossed a complete-game shutout, 2-0, in Game 1 Sunday afternoon against Minnesota Crookston. In Game 2, the Beavers fell behind 10-0 against Valley City State and tried to claw out of the hole with six runs in the seventh inning. But, it wasn’t enough to prevent a 10-6 defeat.

The Beavers moved to 6-5 overall on the season.

Robbins improved to 2-1 in the circle this season by allowing only three hits in Sunday’s opener.

Her run support came in the second inning when Randi Wright hit a sacrifice fly to left field to plate Robbins, and then lead-off hitter Maggie Mercer came through with an RBI single in the seventh inning.

MSU only had five hits in the contest, but got some extra help from two Crookston errors.

This was the third time this season that the two conference teams have played each other in nonconference games. MSU leads the series, 2-1, over Crookston (4-8).

Undefeated Valley City State (12-0), from the NAIA, swept the weekend invitational in Minot against four Division II NSIC schools. The Vikings last victim before heading home were the hosts, Minot State.

Valley City State gradually built up a 10-0 lead on the Beavers with two runs in the third, three in the fourth, two in the sixth and three more in the seventh.

VCSU pitcher Emily Smith (9-0) went 4 2/3 innings before bowing out without giving up a run. Meanwhile, MSU went through five pitchers before it was all said and done: Laura Mendez, Karlee Coughlin, Kylie Patrick, Jordyn Staples and Monica Rivera.

Looking up at a double-digit deficit in the final half inning, the Beavers showed some resiliency by plating six runs off six hits. Coughlin scored the first runs on a three-run triple, Robbins had an RBI single up the middle and Julia Suchan hit a two-run double to the gap in left center field.

Wright grounded out to the shortstop with one runner on base to terminate the comeback attempt.

MSU is back in action this upcoming weekend with the third installment of the Air-Supported Dome Invitational. The Beavers will host Minnesota Crookston at noon and Dickinson State at 2 p.m. on both Saturday (March 2) and Sunday (March 3).

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