MAYVILLE, N.D. – The Mayville State softball team protected its' home field Sunday afternoon against the Dakota State Trojans. A day after scoring a combined 15 runs, the Comets added 12 more and swept the weekend series against the Trojans, winning 1-0 and 11-3, respectively, at Jerome Berg Field in North Star Athletic Association action.
Game One: Mayville State 1, Dakota State 0
Sunday's first game of the doubleheader ended up being a pitcher's duel between Mayville State's Shaye Kemball and Dakota State's Xitlali Lopez.
Kemball held the Trojans hitless until the third inning when both Xotchil Lopez and Rosie Philop hit clutch singles, with Philop's advancing Dakota State's Alexus Foster into scoring position with no outs recorded. But the Comets defense stepped up, snuffing out the scoring attempt with back-to-back-to-back outs, two lineouts to the infield, and a popout to third base.
The hit parade continued, but neither team was able to cross the plate – setting up a thrilling finish in the late stages of the contest.
Heading into the bottom of the seventh inning, with the score tied 0-0, Mayville State rallied. Ashlyn Tingey was hit by a pitch, sending the first batter of the inning to first base without an attempt at a hit. On the next at-bat, Kalley Partyka singled on a hard-hit ball in the infield, putting runners at the corners. Then Coach Ashley Tomblin brought in Madison Milligan, who pinch-hit for Bailey Larkin. Milligan grounded to second, setting up a one-out scoring opportunity for Dayna Gutierrez.
Gutierrez got ahold of the perfect pitch, sending it to left field and scoring Iverson, giving the Comets the single-run win.
Kemball had a perfect game at the plate, going three-for-three with three singles. Partyka added two base hits in three at-bats to collect a multi-hit game for the Comets.
Kemball pitched a complete game, giving up six hits while striking out three Trojan batters. Dakota State's Lopez took the loss, pitching six-and-a-third innings, giving up one run on six hits, while walking two and striking out three Comet batters.
Game Two: Mayville State 11, Dakota State 3
In stark contrast to the first game of the doubleheader Sunday, the bats were alive in game two, as Mayville State plated 11 runs in an 11-3 rout of the Dakota State Trojans at Jerome Berg Field.
Dakota State held the 3-2 lead heading into the bottom of the fifth inning, when the Comets blew the game wide open, plating nine runs.
Down 3-2 to Dakota State, the Comets came out strong in the fifth, facing a new pitcher in Xotchil Lopez.
Shaye Kemball, who went perfect in game one, was the start to the strong inning, nailing a triple to left-center field. She would later score after back-to-back-to-back walks.
Nicole Fierro, pinch-hitting for Sadie Matthews, kept the game going with an RBI single to right, scoring Hayle Boechler.
Again with the bases loaded, and after a pitching change, Taylor Stegman reached on a fielder's choice, scoring Brooke Roeges. Dayna Gutierrez then reached on a fielder's choice, scoring Madison Milligan and blowing the game wide open. The game continued to go the Comets way when Mackenzie Duval reached on a walk, scoring Fierro. A pair of doubles, one by Kemball and the other by Alissa Foster, scored the final three Comet runs to end the game by the eight-run rule in the fifth inning.
Courtney Boll picked up the win for Mayville State, pitching five innings. She gave up three runs, two of them earned, on seven hits. Boll walked one batter and struck out two in the win.
Lopez picked up the loss for Dakota State, pitching one-third of an inning and giving up five runs on two base hits. Madison Aldendifer and Rosie Philop pitched in relief for the Trojans.
Up Next
The Comets (11-13, 7-5 NSAA) will now take their four-game winning streak into a non-conference matchup scheduled for Tuesday at Apollo Sports Complex, where they are scheduled to take on the North Dakota Fighting Hawks, an NCAA Division I school in the Summit League. The first pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m.
The Comets are scheduled to return to conference action on Wednesday, hosting Valley City State for a two-game series, with game one set to kick off at 3 p.m. at Jerome Berg Field.
Of Note
The weather could implicate both the Tuesday matchup at North Dakota and Wednesday's home matchup against Valley City State University. Continue to monitor MSUComets.com and social media for updates on this week's action.
