SOIUX CITY, Iowa – When the College of Saint Mary softball team got to Sioux City on Saturday and there was still snow on both the Morningside University campus field and the team's back-up turf field – it felt like an April Fool's joke.

But the Mustangs shoveled and used snowblowers to get the turf field ready and the two teams played the Great Plains Athletic Conference doubleheader.

Morningside won the first game 11-1 in six innings and then won the second game 5-1.

"We really appreciate the hard work the Morningside coaches, staff and players did to get these games in," CSM Coach Carolyn Todd Bray said. "We scrambled to warm-up indoors at a different location and our players stayed focused and adjusted well."

So well, in fact, that the Flames opened the first game with three straight hits.

Izzy Monzon led off with a triple, Megan Garcia singled to score Monzon and Kaela Persico followed with a single.

But that was all the scoring CSM would do for that game.

"We were excited when we came out swinging so well and got on the scoreboard right away," Bray said. "But we only got two more hits after that."

Monzon added a bunt single later in the game and Daisy Lowther also tallied a single.

The Mustangs outhit CSM 12-5 in the game. The Flames also had two errors on defense.

Garcia took the loss. She pitched 1 1/3 and gave up nine hits. Lowther came on in relief and gave up three hits in 2 2/3.

"Morningside is always a good hitting team," Bray said. "They've got some super seniors on that team that have been doing damage in the GPAC for a long time now. We weren't able to match that."

The Flames were outhit 7-4 in the second game.

Mickayla Larsen, Sydney Griffin, Kayla Reed and Mack Madrigal all had hits for CSM. Madrigal's was a bases-loaded linedrive to score Lexi Smith, who was pinch running for Larsen.

"We did a better job offensively in the second game," Bray said. "A lot of our outs were linedrive shots that were just hit right to their defensive players. And another big positive was that we played errorless defense.

"But Morningside's power at the plate was the difference as the Mustangs had three home runs in the game."

Lowther pitched the complete game. She gave up seven hits and struck out one.

CSM falls to 0-4 in the GPAC and 3-23 overall. The Flames play at Midland University Sunday. First pitch for the make-up games is set for 2 p.m.