ROSEMONT, Ill. – Roosevelt's pitching made Ava Kaspar's three-run home run hold up to lead the Lakers to a split of their two games at the Lewis Invitational hosted at the Parkway Bank Sports Complex.

Kaspar's homer came in the third inning and was the only offense Roosevelt (2-2) would need in a 3-2 win over previously unbeaten St. Cloud State. The Lakers dropped their first game of the day 7-0 against Minnesota Duluth.

Roosevelt 3, St. Cloud State 2
Caitlin Williams jumpstarted Roosevelt's offensive surge in the third inning with a one-out walk. Her speed kept the Huskies' defense on alert and gave Ella Dvoracek the space to hit an infield single to the right side to put two runners on base. A double steal put both of them in scoring position for Kaspar to deliver.

The sophomore first baseman worked a full count against the St. Cloud State pitcher before recognizing her pitch hanging over the plate. She sent a long drive to left field that was well on its way over the fence when it hit the ceiling and fell back two feet inside the fence line. After a brief consultation, the umpires ruled that the ball had a home run trajectory and awarded the runs.

Riley Czarnecki weaved in and out of trouble throughout her appearance, and the bottom of the third was no different. After stranding runners on second and third with her only two strikeouts of the game in the second, Czarnecki was back in trouble to start the third when the Huskies began the frame with three straight hits to grab two runs back.

An easy popout to second base gave the Lakers the first out, but the second was far more impactful. St. Cloud State's runner on second base went with Czarnecki's delivery, which became an issue when the batter grounded a ball to Cassidy Sullivan at third base. The sophomore chased back toward second base, diving to apply the tag before the runner fully retreated. A single and walk loaded the bases, yet it was rendered moot when a ground ball hit the runner going to second base, ending the inning on an interference call.

Kailey Hancock came on to pitch in the fourth inning and shut down the Huskies by allowing just two hits over her four innings in the circle. The junior retired the final seven batters she faced to earn her first win of the season.

Kaspar's day began with an infield single in her first at-bat then advanced to second base on a passed ball before the Lakers' inning ended.  Roosevelt had back-to-back hits in the seventh inning as well with Sophia Barofsky smoking a line drive up the middle and Kendall Pearson deftly finding the space between the shortstop and pitching circle with a groundball for an infield single.

Minnesota Duluth 7, Roosevelt 0
It was a tough start to the day with the Bulldogs jumping out to a 5-0 lead after just two innings before the Lakers settled down. Both of Minnesota Duluth's first inning runs were unearned after a passed ball, but Rebecca Urbaniak was able to strand a runner on second to end the frame.

The first four Roosevelt batters struck out before Kennedi Robien ensured there would be no perfect game with a bloop single into right field. The freshman provided both of Roosevelt's hits in the game, lacing a seventh-inning triple as well to lead off that frame. She was also hit by a pitch in her second plate appearance as she reached base every time she stepped to the plate.

Catie Luzzi pitched four innings of scoreless softball in relief, allowing just two hits and striking out one with just a pair of walks. She also literally kickstarted a double-play in the seventh inning when a line drive deflected off her foot to Barofsky at shortstop, who started the turn for two outs.

UP NEXT: The Lakers return to the dome Friday morning for games against Upper Iowa at 9 a.m. and Bemidji State at 11 a.m.