ST. JOSEPH, Mo. -- The Dickinson State softball team was swinging the bat well early against Cal State San Marcos all-American pitcher Cortney Allen in the opening round of the NAIA National Tournament.
The Blue Hawks, however, couldn't capitalize on its nine hits Monday afternoon.
DSU left nine runners stranded on base, which resulted in a 7-1 loss to CSSM on the campus of Park University.
"We certainly had our chances," Blue Hawks coach Kristen Fleury said. "We were hitting really well early. But we left too many on base. You can't do that against a team like San Marcos."
DSU (25-15) only trailed CSSM (41-10) 1-0 after three innings. But in the top of the fourth, Tani Leasau belted a two-run homer off Blue Hawks pitcher Taysia Kaufman (10-5) to give the top-seeded Cougars a 3-0 lead.
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CSSM added two runs in both of the fifth and sixth innings to blow the game wide open with a 7-0 lead.
DSU, the No. 4 seed, got on the board in the bottom of the seventh when Janel LaRont singled to send Regan Lawrence home. But it wasn't nearly enough for the Blue Hawks.
"I told the girls, 'They need to forget about it and come back tomorrow,'" Fleury said. "It's a one-game season from now on."
DSU turns around today and faces third-seeded Marian (Ind.) at 2 p.m. Marian (31-10) lost Monday to host Park, 6-1.
If the Blue Hawks beat Marian, they play again at 5 p.m. The season ends for DSU with a loss.
"It's all about timely hitting," Fleury said. "We need to take advantage of our hits when we get them. We can't continue to leave runners on base."
CSSM 010 222 0 -- 7 13 0
DSU 000 000 1 -- 1 9 0
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Cortney Allen, Katie Wilkinson and Tayler Ybarra. Taysia Kaufman, Nicole Lobato and Aubrey Ayala. W-Cortney Allen (32-5). L-Kaufman (10-5). HR-Tani Leasau.
Highlights: CSSM, Leasau 2-for-3, run, 3 RBIs; Sarah Quiambao 3-for-4, run, 3 RBIs; Kaitlin McGinley 2-for-4, run. DSU, Kaufman 2-for-4; Alex Vargas 2-for-4; Regan Lawrence, 1-for-1, run.
Records: CSSM 41-10, DSU 25-15
