ATLANTA, Ga. – North Dakota softball opened Sunday's action at the Bob Heck Memorial with an 8-5 win over West Georgia, before falling in the tournament's nightcap as host Georgia State walked off the Hawks in the seventh to win 3-2. The Hawks move to 11-12 on the season.
 
In Sunday's opener, which was delayed by three hours, the Wolves grabbed a 3-0 lead after their first two trips to the plate. The Hawks answered in the home half of the second as Camryn Lasota hit a solo home run, her third in as many days and fifth of the season, to put UND on the scoreboard. The Hawks opened up the contest as a three-hit third inning pushed across three runs for a 4-3 UND lead.
 
A bases loaded walk to Callie Honig plated Katie Joten, a wild pitch scored Taya Hopfauf and Lasota singled in Neumayer to account for the run-scoring action. Hailey Bethune (2B), Hopfauf (1B) and Lasota recorded the base knocks in the frame.
 
Unity Nelson started for UND and tossed around bases loaded situations in the first and third innings to limit the Wolves. Nelson was relieved with two on in the fourth by Katelyn Strauss who received an 8-2 double play to end the threat and keep the 4-3 lead in tact.
 
UND's lead increased to 6-3 as H. Bethune homered out to left centerfield scoring Brooklyn Morris who led off the inning with an HBP. The two sides traded a pair of runs in the fifth and Makaela Carr took over for Strauss in the frame. In the bottom half, Brooklyn House placed down a bunt single following a HBP to Honig and a walk to Lasota, and Honig scored on a throwing error on House's base hit. Three batters later, Joten walked to plate Lasota for an 8-5 lead.
 
Carr stranded Wolves at the corners in the sixth as she pitched around a one-out double, but then worked quickly in the seventh with consecutive punchouts and a groundout to earn her third save of the season.
 
In the weekend's final game, the Hawks again rallied from a multiple-run deficit as a 2-0 lead by the Panthers through two innings of play was erased with single runs in the third and fifth. UND used a sacrifice fly from H. Bethune in the third and the first career home run off the bat of Makenna Alexander who sent the second pitch she saw over the left field wall to even the contest at 2-2 in the fifth.
 
For the second straight start, Jackie Albrecht battled through six innings as she faced 31 batters. Albrecht stranded two Panthers on the base paths in the first and left the bags loaded in the third. Ten total GSU runners were left on. She scattered five hits and worked around eight free passes to take the circle in the seventh. A full count pitch to the lead off batter in the seventh left the yard as the Sun Belt foe avoided the Hawks winning a fourth true road game this spring.
 
The Hawks venture north into the Volunteer State for a Tuesday doubleheader with Tennessee Tech. First pitch in Cookeville is set for 3 p.m. Live coverage links are available at www.FightingHawks.com.
 
Postgame Notes

• North Dakota finishes a weekend above .500 for the second time this season (Doc Halverson UNI-Dome Classic)
• The loss to Georgia State is the sixth one-run defeat suffered by the Hawks this season
• Joten, Hopfauf, Lasota and H. Bethune all recorded two hits on the day
• Joten's reached safely streak is now at a team-leading six games, while Lasota, Honig and Morris are each at five games
• The Hawks have hit home runs in each of the past four games combining for ten total
• UND has hit 12 of its 16 home runs this season in the month of March
• The Hawks were hit a season high three times against West Georgia; all three batters scored
• Against the Wolves, UND matched its season high in defensive assists with a dozen
• Brooklyn House recorded a single game team season high in assists with seven against GSU

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