LAKE MILLS — The Lake Mills softball team responded to a tough loss on Thursday by scoring its first runs of the season and shutting out Belmond-Klemme on Friday.

The Bulldogs (1-2 overall, 1-0 North Iowa Conference) lost 1-0 Thursday at Central Springs when Kelli Wilson hit a one-run home run in the fifth inning. The game was a defensive battle, and Lake Mills out-hit the Panthers 3-2.

On Friday, the Bulldogs bounced back against Belmond Klemme with 13 hits and a 6-0 win.

Lake Mills was led defensively by Emily Orban. She retired six batters and walked one. Through three complete games, she hasn’t given up more than one base on balls in an outing.

“Emily’s been doing great,” said first-year coach Matt Daniels. “She had three great games this week, and it was nice for her to finally get a win. She’s been keeping the ball down and being consistent. You can’t ask for much more.”

After posting one hit in the season opener against North Union and three at Central Springs, the Bulldogs more than tripled their total season output against the Broncos.

“It was nice to see some of the bats coming together, stringing together a few hits,” Daniels said. “Everyone was hitting and having fun. We had been hitting the ball early this week, we just hadn’t been getting them through (the infield).”

Lake Mills scored its first run in the second inning. In the third, the Bulldogs added one more, and they padded the 2-0 lead with four more runs in the fourth.

Sarah Orban led Lake Mills at the plate with two hits and two RBIs. Katlyn Eidness added two hits — including a double — and Brianna Smith had two RBIs.

Next, the Bulldogs will host West Fork at 6 p.m. Tuesday.

Statistics are the in the Scoreboard: May 30 post.