February 12, 2017

Photo credit by Scott Voigt

ABERDEEN, S.D. – Knotted at 6-6 in the sixth inning Sunday evening at Presentation (S.D.), the Saints scored a run to take a 7-6 lead and held off Dakota State (S.D.) in a non-conference nightcap battle between two North Star Athletic Association conference foes.

The Trojans finished the day with a 1-2 record.  PC finished the tournament with a 2-2 record.

For the third straight game, Dakota State scored its first run of the game in the opening inning.  Kayla Schmell hit a single with one out.  Nicole Stewart reached on base caused by PC's defensive miscue and advanced Schmell to third base.  Jasmin Lucero produced an RBI ground out to score Schmell to give the Trojans a 1-0 lead.

The Saints scored three times in the bottom first frame as they overtook a 3-1 lead over the Trojans.  Amber Ewert recorded an RBI single to tie the game.  Kassandra Orozco added a 2-RBI double to make it 3-1 in favor of PC.

The Saints scored a run in the bottom second inning to extend their lead to 4-1.

DSU scored a run in the top third frame.  Schmell led off the Trojans with a single.  Stewart produced a sacrifice bunt to advance Schmell to third base.  Lucero followed that up with an RBI single to score Schmell as Dakota State trailed 4-2.

Kailee McFadden, Peyton Brokiewicz and Schmell hit back-to-back-to-back singles to open up the fourth inning.   Brokiewicz was thrown out at second during the play after Schmell's single.  Stewart smashed a 3-run home run as DSU regained a 5-4 lead with two outs.

Orozco added another 2-RBI double in the bottom fourth inning to grab a 6-5 lead for Presentation.

Dakota State tied the game at 6-6 in the top fifth.  Audrey Kosman was hit-by-pitch, followed by Tatum Ronke's single to advance Kosman to second base.  Caitlin Murray added a single before Kosman was thrown out at third base.  Megan Zephier recorded an RBI sacrifice fly to score Ronke to knot the game.

Mendoza hit a single with one out in the bottom sixth inning for the Saints.  She swiped to second base.  After Haylee Hemmert's ground out to advance Mendoza to third base, Ewert produced an RBI single to score Mendoza to give PC a slim 7-6 lead.

Dakota State could not convert their scoring opportunity in the final inning as PC struck out three DSU's batters to secure the victory.

Schmell went 4-of-4 at the plate with three runs scored for the Trojans.  Stewart added a home run, single and drove in three runs.  Ronke had two hits.  Peyton Brokiewicz, Jasmin Lucero, Audrey Kosman, Murray, Zephier and McFadden each had a hit.

Mendoza went perfect at the plate, going 4-of-4 with three runs scored and swiped four times for the Saints.  Ewert added two hits and produced three RBIs.  Orozco had two doubles, a single and tallied three RBIs. 

DSU outhit PC 14-12 in the game.  The Trojans left eight runners on base while the Saints had six runners left on base.

Kosman (L, 0-1) took the loss after tossing a complete game for DSU.  She gave up seven runs on 12 hits. 

Megan Medonca started the game in the pitching circle for the Saints.  She allowed six runs on 12 hits.   Ashlyn O'Keefe (W, 2-0) recorded the victory in relief, working for 2 1/2 innings.   She limited DSU to two hits and struck out five Trojan batters.

Dakota State returns back to Presentation Dome next Sunday (Feb. 19) for another three-game schedule.  The Trojans face Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) at 2 p.m., followed by York (Neb.) at 4 p.m. and North Star's conference foe Mayville State (N.D.) in a non-conference contest at 6 p.m.  All games are held in Aberdeen, S.D.

Nick Huntimer, Dakota State University Sports Information Director