ATLANTA, Ga. – It was a tale of two contests for North Dakota softball on Friday afternoon from the Bob Heck Memorial on the campus of Georgia State as the Hawks beat Colgate for a run-rule victory, before falling in the seventh in a pitchers' duel to Power 4 foe of the B1G. UND moves to 9-11 on the season and ties the second-best 20-game start to a season in the Hawks' Division I era.
 
North Dakota softball erupted offensively in Friday's opener against the Raiders with 15 runs on 11 hits. In the second game, the Hawks walked six times but stranded five runners as the Scarlet Knights' Ella Harrison struck out 16 batters in a no-hit effort. UND senior arm Jackie Albrecht was just as masterful against the B1G opposition. She set a new career high in strikeouts with a dozen as she crossed over ten in a game for the second time in her career. Albrecht allowed just one hit, a bunt single in the seventh, while Rutgers' lone run crossed on a wild pitch after a double steal put runners at second and third.
 
In the opener, the Hawks struck first with three runs in their first trip to the plate as Katie Joten's placed her team-leading sixth double of the season down the left field line and she advanced a bag on a wild pitch. An infield single off the bat of Quincie Chunestudey put Hawks at the corners, before an error on a batted ball in Taya Hopfauf's at bat allowed her to reach and emptied the base paths as UND grabbed a 2-0 lead. Hopfauf scored on a wild pitch as the lead grew to 3-0.
 
Unity Nelson started for the third time in her rookie season but exited for Makaela Carr with one out in the first. Carr picked up a huge 4-6-3 double play as the Colgate threat in the home half of the second ended with the Raiders plating just a single run.
 
North Dakota broke open the contest in the second inning as a five-hit frame, with the assistance of two Colgate errors, resulted in five runs and an 8-1 lead. Quincie Chunestudey, Katelyn Neumayer and Brooklyn House all singled in runs for the Hawks in the frame with the latter two hitters accounting for a pair of RBI.
 
Colgate answered with a two-run HR in the third, but the Hawks turned to the long ball in the next half frame to increase their advantage. Neumayer left the yard for a two-run shot, her second of the season, to prompt a pitching change for the Raiders and two batters later, Camryn Lasota exited out to left field for a solo blast, her team-leading third of the year, for an 11-3 Hawks lead.
 
The long ball barrage was not over for the Hawks as Hailey Bethune belted a solo shot out to left centerfield for her first career home run and a 12-3 UND advantage. The bow was tied on the victory three batters later as Joten walked and Chunestudey reached on a HBP to set the table for Hopfauf who hammered a three-run shot to put an exclamation point on a highly productive opening game at the plate.
 
Carr finished the contest by scattering four hits, while striking out seven batters to pick up her fourth win of the season.
 
The Hawks return at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday for a rematch with Rutgers. Live stat links for the weekend's action will be available at www.FightingHawks.com.
 
Postgame Notes

• UND takes a 2-1 series lead over Colgate
• The run total for the Hawks against the Raiders marks the most plated by UND in a game since plating 18 runs in a win over St. Thomas on April 15, 2023
• It's the most runs against a non-conference opponent since scoring 17 runs against Robert Morris on March 14, 2015, at a tournament hosted by Miami (OH)
• The Hawks hit four home runs, which is their most in a single game since hitting four against Sacramento State on April 15, 2017
• UND's 11 hits against Colgate mark the sixth game this season with ten or more
• Joten delivered her team-leading eighth multi-hit game, while Chunestudey and Neumayer each recorded a pair of hits
• Hopfauf recorded her team-leading sixth multi-RBI game of the season
• Three Hawks scored three times against Colgate
• Hopfauf drew half of UND's six walks in the loss to Rutgers and was the lone Hawk to not strikeout against Harrison
• Albrecht fanned four Scarlet Knights twice
• Albrecht's previous career high in strikeouts was ten which came in a loss to Lamar (2/23/24)
• The loss to the Scarlet Knights is UND's fifth one-run loss this season

 
For more information on North Dakota softball, visit FightingHawks.com or follow on social media @UNDsoftball.