Sioux Falls, S.D. – The Northern State University softball team battled on the second day of the NSIC Tournament, but ultimately fell to No. 5 Winona State and No. 14 Augustana, ending the 2018 season. The Wolves fell to the Warriors 2-1, in the bottom of the seventh, and 7-3 to the Vikings. Northern finishes the season with a 29-22 record overall.
 
The Wolves scored first against Winona State, notching one run in the top of the fourth. Kaitlyn King led off the inning with a single in the 5-6 hole, and advanced to second on a single to left by Jamie Fisher. The sophomore came around to score two at-bats later, as Jenna Helgeson ripped one up the middle. The Warriors answered back with a run of their own in the top of the fifth inning, to tie things at 1-all.
 
Northern had their opportunities in the top of the seventh with runners on first and second. The Wolves were unable to push a run across and fell in the bottom of the frame on a 2-out single to centerfield.
 
Fisher led the team offensively in the game, going 2-for-3. Courtney Sjerven, King, and Helgeson tallied the final three team hits for the Wolves, with King scoring the lone run and Helgeson notching the RBI. Fisher suffered her 13^th loss of the season, despite throwing 6.2 solid innings for the Wolves. The Omaha native gave up just two earned runs on eight hits with a strikeout.
 
NSU struck first again in game two, notching one run in their first plate appearances of the game. Augustana grabbed the lead in the bottom of the second notching two runs, while adding one run apiece in both the third and the fifth.
 
Northern cut into the Augie lead in the sixth, led off by Sjerven with a single to right. Thompson then notched a 1-out single up the middle and the pair came around to score on a Katie Dawson single to center and Helgeson single to left. The 1-run deficit did not last long, as Augustana tallied three runs in the bottom of the sixth to seal the victory.
 
Sjerven led the team in the game, going 2-for-4 with a run scored. Thompson, Fisher, Dawson, Helgeson, and Cassidy Schaar each recorded a single, as the Wolves connected for seven hits and three runs scored in the game. Fisher threw 6.0 complete innings, giving up four earned runs on 12 hits with one strikeout and two walks.
 
The Wolves conclude the 2018 season and their first under the direction of head coach Jenny Fuller. Northern's four seniors, Makenzie Thielen, Katie Uittenbogaard, Katie Dawson, and Carly Brousek exhausted their eligibility, playing the final games of their Northern State careers.