Box Score Lakewood, California- UCSB (15-7) struggled at the plate against North Dakota State's Whitney Johnson, who got her 7th win on the season in the second game of the Long Beach State Invitational.
NDSU (10-10) jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning and scored four more runs in the fifth frame to give the Bison a comfortable six-run lead.
UCSB freshman starter Alex Pingree (2-1) had a rough day in the circle, giving up five hits and five earned runs through four innings of work. The Gaucho defense committed four errors in the field behind her.
Left fielder McKenzie Kane broke up a no-hit bid for Bison starter Whitney Johnson (7-5) with a two-out single in the sixth. It would be the only hit for UCSB in the game, but the squad left eight others on base following walks.
Andriana Collins provided a bright spot for the Gauchos, pitching three scoreless innings after relieving Pingree in the fourth. She walked one and got a batter swinging en route to UCSB's 7-1 loss.
