SANTA CLARA, Calif. – The University of North Dakota softball team split a pair of contests to open the first day of action at the Silicon Valley Classic in Santa Clara, Calif. on Friday.
 
UND (4-7) dropped the opening game, 5-0, to Canisius College before a wild final two innings gave the Fighting Hawks an 8-5 win in extras over Boise State to snap the losing streak at five straight.
 
Canisius 5, North Dakota 0
The Golden Griffins used four runs in the top of the first inning and some strong pitching to cruise past North Dakota, 5-0, in the opening game of the day.
 
Jannay Jones earned some tough luck in the circle for the Hawks, allowing 10 hits and five runs (three earned) over seven innings to collect her fourth loss of the year. The sophomore saw UND commit a pair of defensive errors in the first inning that helped spark the opening spurt from the Golden Griffins, turning a 2-0 deficit into a four-run hole.
 
Offensively, UND mustered only a pair of hits and drew a walk to see only three baserunners on the day.
 
North Dakota 8, Boise State 5 (8)
Both teams combined for 14 runs over the final two innings, as UND exploded for an 8-5 victory over Boise State in eight innings to close Friday's action.
 
Trailing 1-0 heading to the seventh, UND knotted the game at one when Dani Romero led off the frame with a homerun to left field before a seven-run outburst in the top of the eighth gave the Hawks the victory.
 
Nikki Pica nearly went the distance in the win, tossing 7.2 innings of 10-hit, five-run (four earned) ball, but she was lifted for Jones to get the final out of the game and notch her second save of the year.
 
The middle of the order was deadly for the Hawks, with Angel Love, Jones, Cassie Castaneda, and Dani Romero combining for seven hits, five runs scored, and three RBIs.
 
After Boise State struck first in the bottom of the first, neither team could string any hits together to do damage on the scoreboard. UND placed runners in scoring position in two of the first three innings, but was unable to break through to keep the Broncos in front, 1-0, heading to the bottom of the third.
 
In that inning, BSU nearly added to its lead, loading the bases with no outs; however, Pica and the UND defense worked out of the jam to keep the Hawks within striking distance.
 
It wasn't until the seventh inning when UND was able to get on the board as Romero sent a ball over the left field fence to tie the contest at one and send it to extra innings.
 
In extras, the offense came alive for both teams. North Dakota opened with a runner on second base before she was brought home on an RBI single by Lauren Feld to give the Hawks the lead for the first time. Back-to-back hits by Love and Jones loaded the bases for Castaneda before she followed with a single into right field to score Feld and extend the advantage to 3-1 with only one out. After a walk to Romero made it 4-1, Jocelyn Kirk broke it wide open with a grand slam to cap off a seven-run frame for the green and white.
 
Boise State made things interesting in its half of the eighth, scoring three runs and bringing the winning run to the plate, but Jones got the final out of the game and preserved the 8-5 win.
 
North Dakota will head to San Jose for a pair of games tomorrow against Colorado State and San Jose State, with first pitch coming at 1:30 p.m. against the Rams.