BEMIDJI, Minn. -- Taking the diamond for the final two times in the regular season, the No. 14 Augustana softball team split a pair of games with Bemidji State. The Vikings dropped the opener, 3-1, but came back for a 3-0 win in game two. Augustana ends the regular season with a 47-8 (27-3 NSIC) record. BSU is 24-30 (7-23). As of Saturday, the 47 wins by the Vikings are the most of any team in DII softball. 

Next up for the Vikings is the NSIC tournament, which starts May 2, in Rochester, Minnesota. Augustana will be the No. 2 seed, play on Thursday afternoon, and take on lowest seed remaining from the opening-round play-in games. 

Moments that mattered: 

• Augustana ends the regular season with 47 wins overall and 27 in the NSIC. Both win totals are highest for the program since 2015.
• The Vikings game one loss marked their first loss in over two weeks. Ashley Mickschl pitched a complete game with seven strikeouts. Maggie Dunnett drove in a lone run in game one, and Maggie Kadrlik had two hits.
• Amber Elliott pitched a gem in game two. The sophomore finished with 10 strikeouts and allowed just four hits in a complete game effort. 
• Kadrlik continued to make her case for NSIC Player of the Year. The senior drove in two more runs, and now has 13 RBI and six home runs over the last six games.
• Shannon Petersen also drove in a run in game two. She stands second on the team with 56 RBI

Game one:

Augustana started off strong in game two, scoring the game's first run in the top of the second inning. After Samantha Eisenreich got on base, Dunnett connected on a double to right field to drive in the run.

Ashley Mickschl started game one and ran into trouble in the third as the Beavers tied the game on an RBI single to center. Although Mickschl allowed two more runs, the sophomore still pitched all six innings for her 19th complete game this year. 

Following back-to-back hits and an RBI triple, Bemidji State took a 3-1 lead in the fourth inning. Augustana had a chance to tie the 6th inning with two runners on but grounded out to end the inning.

The Vikings also got runners on first and second in the 7th, but couldn't come up with the clutch hit when needed. Augustana snapped their 14-game win streak and lost for the first time since early April.

Game two:

Augustana started strong in game two, thanks in part to Maggie Kadrlik. The senior crushed a solo home run to left field in game two, giving the Viking a 1-0 lead. Over the last six games, Kadrlik is a remarkable 17-20 (.850) with 13 RBI, 6 home runs, and a 1.850 slugging percentage.

The lone run was certainly enough for starter Amber Elliott, who was on her 'A' game throughout. The sophomore scattered just four hits and collected 10 strikeouts in her complete-game effort. Elliott has now won six straight games, allowing a total of just six earned runs.

Leading 1-0, the Viking offense added on insurance runs in the third inning. Following a Kendall Cornick single, Shannon Petersen sent a double down the left field line. Cornick came around to score, which marked her NSIC-best 61st run scored this season.

Kadrlik followed with the second-straight double, scoring Petersen and making it a 3-0 game. Bemidji State was able to get one runner in scoring position in the later innings, but Elliott ended the game with two more strikeouts in the seventh inning.