Kearney, Neb. – Senior left fielder Meg Housholder knocked in four runs, junior first baseman Cheyenne Hamilton belted a three-run homer and sophomore Erin Hallman threw a complete game seven-hitter to help Nebraska-Kearney rout Sioux Falls, 10-4, Friday evening in St. Cloud, Minn.

The game was played inside the Husky Dome and is part of the annual Kelly Laas Memorial Invite. Earlier in the day, St. Cloud State (7-1) scored two runs in the bottom of the seventh to clip the Lopers, 7-6.

To beat the Cougars (1-1), UNK pounded out 12 hits and took advantage of six walks and two errors. In a five-run third, freshman second baseman Kaylee Schutte (Elkhorn South) started things off by reaching on an infield error. The next three Lopers reached safely with Schutte (0 for 2, two runs) scoring on a single by sophomore center fielder Alexis Ray (3 for 5).

With one down and two home, Hamilton (Frederick, Colo.) belted her second dinger of the year to cap the big inning. She was walked the rest of the game and finished 1 for 2 with two runs and those thee RBI's.

In the UNK fifth, Housholder (Parker, Colo.) came up with two down and the bases full of teammates. She promptly hit a triple and later added an RBI single in the seventh to end 3 for 4 with a run scored.

Hallman (Lakewood, Colo.) earned her first win as a Loper by allowing one earned run on seven hits and two walks. Fanning two, the transfer from Division I Maryland-Eastern Shore tossed five shutout innings.

Against the host Huskies, UNK (3-7) almost overcame six errors in the field by scoring two in the top of the seventh to grab a 6-5 lead. After tallying four in the fourth to grab a one-run lead, UNK moved ahead again as sophomore shortstop Sara Sempek (Papillion) belted a two-out, two-run double. She finished 3 for 4 with a run scored.

However, the Huskies used a walk, two singles and a double to pick up the win. Three different SCSU players had two hits, including cleanup hitter Alexis Jacobs (2 for 4, two runs), with junior Kate Kopeck allowing no earned runs over six full innings.

For UNK, sophomore third baseman Alexis Howe (Papillion) went 3 for 3 with a run and two RBI's from the eight hole.

On Saturday, the Lopers face defending national champion Minnesota State (6-0) in the morning and play two against the Augustana Vikings (5-4) at night. The long day likely won't wrap close to 11 p.m.