Hillsboro, N.D.  – Comet softball hosted top of the conference opponent, the Bellevue Bruins for a four-game series on Friday and Saturday. The games were set to be played on the Comets home field, but field conditions were not ready.

Hillsboro Head Softball Coach Cory Erickson offered to host Mayville State so they would not have to go on the road. This allowed the Comets a short drive of just 12 miles.

"Shout out to Cory Erickson. He get his field prepped and ready for us both days and we are so thankful for all the things he does for the softball community!" said head coach Jordan Olson.

Despite strong pitching performance from Emily Haines and Courtney Boll all weekend, the Bruins would take the series 3-1. The Comets would hold Bellevue to just 10 runs in 4 games.

"Bellevue is a good team, they are coached really well and their players are smart. They have a strong pitching staff and play clean defense so we knew we would have to stay laser focused all weekend," added Olson. "We also knew this series wouldn't be easy and that would would need to perform our best in each facet of the game. Unfortunately, untimely errors in the first 3 games allowed Bellevue to push runs across the plate and snag 3 wins that I thought we could have had."

Game 1: L 1-0
Game one would be an old fashion pitchers dual where Haines [Mayville] and Cunningham [Bellevue] would combine for just 9 hits and 15 strikeouts and only 1 run would cross the plate.

It would be the first inning that would be the deciding factor in the game. Bellevue would draw a walk, steal a base, hit a sac fly and hit a single to score the only run of the game.

Mayville State would find some light in the 4^th where Mackenzie Hughes led the inning off with a single to center and Lindsey Tulla would smoke a double to right but the Bruins would shut down the Comets 1-2-3 in a row, stranding runners at 2^nd and 3^rd.

In the bottom of the 5^th, Madison Terres would lead it off with a double, but the Comets couldn't get things going.

In their final chance in the bottom of the 7^th, Alyssa Avila would give hope for Mayville State as she led it off with a single to centerfield. Terres was then hit by a pitch, but the Bruins strong pitching would shut the Comets down and they would take the game 1-0.

Hughes, Tulla (2B), Avila and Terres (2B) would each have a hit a piece in the game.

Haines would get her 17^th start of the season, where she would have a stellar performance giving up just 1 run on 5 hits and striking out 6.

Game 2: L 2-1
Things were quiet for both teams in game 2 until the top of the 3^rd inning where the Bruins would have a lead off single and score on an error.

The Comets would lessen the threat of more runs when Mackenzie Hughes was able to throw out a Bruin at home for a double play from centerfield.

Mayville State responded quickly in the bottom of the 3^rd when Mackenzie Iverson lead off of the inning with a single and Hughes bunted her over to second.

A wild pitch would put Iverson at 3^rd with Tulla at the plate, but a ground ball to 2^nd would get Iverson too far off of the bag and she would be picked off.

Tulla stood at 2^nd with 2 outs and Megan Elliott was able to drive her in with a single up the middle, tying things up 1-1 heading into the 4^th.

Another pitching battle would have the game knotted at 1 until the 7^th inning where the Bruins reached first base by a Comets error. With 2 outs, the Bruins would hit a triple to left center, taking the lead 2-1.

Lindsey Tulla went 1-3, 1 2B
Megan Elliott went 1-2, 1 BB, 1 RBI
Autumn McGough went 1-3
Madison Terres went 1-3
Mackenzie Iverson went 1-3
 
With Lindsey Tulla's double in this game, she is now tied for 3^rd for doubles in a season for Mayville State. She stands with Jocelyn Ontiveros at 16. Chelsa Carley had 17 ('08) and Angelique Macias holds the record with 18 ('12).
 
Courtney Boll got her 13^th start of the season on the mound and she would have a good performance. She only allowed 2 runs on 8 scattered hits and she also struck out 3.

Game 3: L 3-1
Mayville State looked to respond on Saturday afternoon as they would take on the Bruins for two more. The wind would blow in from dead center with gusts of 45.

Things were quiet for both teams until the Bruins would score 2 in the top of the 3^rd by drawing a walk and creating two Comet errors.

In the top of the 6^th, the Bruins would be able to plate another run on another 2 errors by the Comets.

Mayville State would see life in the bottom of the 6^th when Tulla smoked a ball down the left field line. With 2 outs, Avila would drive her in with a single to right but that would be all for the Comets.

Lindsey Tulla went 1-3
Megan Elliott went 1-3
Alyssa Avila went 1-3, 1 RBI
Madison Terres went 1-3
 
Haines would have another good performance, giving up just 2 hits in 6 innings, she struck out 5. Lacey Mathiowetz would close in the 7^th, giving up zero hits.

Game 4: W 5-4
Game 4 would be a thriller. The Comets would come out with a new mindset after resetting in between the games.

It would be another pitcher battle until the 3^rd inning where the Comets would be able to break things open scoring 3 runs.

Hughes would draw a walk and steal second, advancing to third on the throw. Tulla would then drive her in with a single to right.

Iverson hit a nice bunt single and Elliott would double to right, scoring both Tulla and Iverson.

The Comets now led 3-0 heading into the 4^th and would hold that lead until the 6^th.

In the top of the 6th the Bruins would draw a lead off walk and steal second. They would then use back to back singles to plate one run.

Boll would shut down two in a row with the score being 3-1 Comets, but the Bruins would hit a ground ball to third that would bounce off the base and fly down the foul territory of left field, plating two Bellevue runs. Game is knotted 3-3.

Bellevue would score again in the 7^th to take the lead but the Comets would put the pressure on and load up the bases with 2 outs and Autumn McGough would be patient at the plate drawing a walk scoring Kennedy Vettel. This tied it up 4-4 and extra innings would be needed.

The Comets were able to hold the Bruins in the top of the 8^th.

With one out in the bottom of the 8^th, Terres would single up the middle and Hughes would follow suit, utilizing her speed and singling to second.

With runners at 1^st and 2^nd, Tulla walked up to the plate and smacked a single to center, scoring Terres and walking it off to give the Bruins just their second loss in conference play.

"A walk off win is always fun, to go extra innings in game 4 of a series and get the win against the top team is always a good thing. I am proud of our team for not shutting down from the wild wind or from Bellevue snagging the first 3 from us. This team is heading in the right direction, at the right time. It won't get easier from here as we take on a strong Dickinson and strong Valley City to close out conference play, but if we can compete like we did this weekend, I think we can go get wins in those series," added Olson.

Mayville State will hit the road next weekend taking at Dickinson State University in Dickinson, ND.

For full schedule details visit: https://msucomets.com/sports/softball/schedule