Crookston, Minn. – Minnesota Crookston softball finished the home portion of their schedule on Thursday afternoon, splitting a pair with Highway-2 rivals Bemidji State.
 
The Beavers would take game one, 10-9, in a wild affair, while the Golden Eagles would win game two, 1-0, in a reversal of the first game.
 
Minnesota Crookston improves to 15-36 (6-20 NSIC).
 
Game One
Bemidji State would score two runs each in the first two innings, taking a 4-0 lead heading into the third inning.
 
The Golden Eagles would answer. Freshman Whitnee Curry (Fr., UT, Lincoln, Neb.) would double, scoring Leah Macias (Sr., OF, West Covina, Calif.), but Brittney Mengel (Fr., OF, Sullivan, Wis.) would be thrown out at home.
 
BSU would answer with a run of their own in the top of the fourth, but Minnesota Crookston would answer with three runs, highlighted by a two-run single by Mengel.
 
In the bottom of the fifth, the Golden Eagles would take the lead off of a mammoth shot to left field from Alina Avalos (Jr., IF, Riverside, Calif.), her sixth of the season. Jordan Peterson (R-Sr., UT, Lakeville, Minn.) and Sydney Huwe (Fr., UT, Carver, Minn.) would each double in a run, giving the Golden Eagles an 8-5 lead, heading into the top of the sixth.
 
Bemidji State would explode for five in the sixth, taking a 10-8 lead. That lead would stand heading into the seventh inning.
 
The Golden Eagles would mount a rally in the final inning. Macias would single in Gabriella Blomdahl (Jr., OF, Duluth, Minn.), making it 10-9. The Golden Eagles would strand runners on the corners, falling 10-9.
 
The Golden Eagles finished with 14 hits, highlighted by a pair of three-for-four days at the plate from Macias and Avalos. Shaelyn Grant (So., C/OF, Grand Junction, Colo.) and Jenna Parfeniuk (R-So., IB/P, Winnipeg, Manitoba) would each collect two hits.
 
Evie Stuck (Fr., P/OF, Papillion, Neb.) fell to 7-17 in the circle, going 5.1 innings of work, giving up 10 runs, just four of which were earned. The Golden Eagles committed five errors in game one.
 
Game Two
The final home game of the season for the Golden Eagles would see both teams combine for just nine hits.
 
The Golden Eagles would score on an Ariana Gambala (So., UT, San Diego, Calif.) strikeout, but Parfeniuk would steal second, allowing Grant to cross home for the first and only run of the game.
 
Thayda Houser (So., P, Seymour, Iowa) would pitch brilliantly, allowing just four hits, going the distance. It was Houser's second career complete game and her second in three starts.
 
The Golden Eagles had five hits as a team, led by Parfeniuk, who finished with two hits in the game. The two-hit game was the seventh time in her career that she has had a multi-hit performance.
 
What's Next
The Golden Eagles will head to Marshall, Minn., and Sioux Falls, S.D., for their final road trip of the season. First pitch between the Mustangs and Golden Eagles is set for 1 PM on Saturday afternoon.