Mayville, N.D. - Mayville State Comets Softball finally returned home Saturday after 37 consecutive games on the road dating all the way back to January 31st. The Comets hosted the Dakota State Trojans for the first two games of a NSAA four game series at Paul Karlstad Field in Portland. 

The Comets put up 30 hits between the two games & both games would end in a run rule as they celebrated senior day. 

"It was so nice to be able to play at home yesterday. The weather was perfect, we had a ton of fans and our players were ready to play on their own field. After nearly 11 weeks on the road, the feeling of playing at home is just that much sweeter," said head coach Jordan Olson.

Game 1: W 11-0
- Lacey Mathiowetz gets things started with a 1 out single in the bottom of the 1st 
- Lindsey Tulla, Madison Terres & Ryanne Bass would all hit doubles in the inning, allowing the Comets to get out to an early 3-0 run
- Mackenzie Hughes hit a 1 out triple to right field in the bottom of the 2nd, followed up with another double by Tulla, Comets lead 4-0
- In the bottom of the 4th, Tulla would find herself with runners at 2nd & 3rd, she would hit a single putting the Comets up 5-0
- Terres hit a triple, extending the lead 7-0
- Maizie Wolanski came in to pinch hit, hitting a line drive single to centerfield scoring Terres
- Miquela Pino drew a walk, Koral Perez had a pinch hit single followed with back to back singles by Antarez Sierra and Hughes to make it 11-0 heading into the 5th
- The Trojans got the bases loaded in the top of the 5th, but Mathiowetz would get out of it, giving her a complete 5 inning shut out

"We came out in game 1 with grit. It was a full team win and all credited to the players on the field and in the dugout. Our energy was unmatched. We had 10 different players record hits, we played defense well and Lacey really stayed in rhythm in the circle for a complete 5 innings," said Olson. "You love to see kids come off the bench and get hits, we had 3 QABs off the bench from pinch hitters and you love to see that."

Game2: W 13-5
- The Trojans came out scoring a run on a Comet error to get an early 1-0 lead
- Hughes led the game off being hit by a pitch and immediately stole second, Tulla drove her in for her 3rd RBI of the day; Tulla is able to score later with a passed ball to take the lead
- Trojans draw a walk in the second, the Comets struggled defensively to take care of the ball and with 2 outs, the Trojans hit a 2 RBI double to make it a 3-2 game early
- Dakota State scores 2 runs on 4 hits in the top of the 3rd making it 5-2 Trojans
- Momberg would come in the circle in relief for Autumn McGough mid 3rd inning and would be able to give up just 4 scattered hits, 0 runs and strike out 4
- Trailing by 3 heading into the bottom of the 5th, the Comets put the lever down 
- Hughes is hit by a pitch for the second time in the game to lead off the inning
- Mathiowetz and Tulla would hit back to back singles, and Terres would hit a moon shot over right center make it 7-5 Comets
- Mackenzie Fuxa then drew a walk & senior Desi Lawrence smoked a double off the right center field fence scoring Fuxa
- Sierra with a single, Hughes with a triple and Mathiowetz with a single would give the Comets an 11-5 advantage heading into the 6th
- The Comets scored 8 runs on 7 hits in the 5th inning after trailing by 3
- Tulla led the bottom of the 6th off with another double & Terres would drive her in with a single
- With 2 outs and a runner at 2nd, senior Miquela Pino hit a walk off single to right center scoring Terres and winning the game by run rule

"Autumn struggled a little bit early to find the zone but that was okay because Baileigh was able to come in a shut them down. That's what we talk about as a pitching staff, there are off days for everyone, which means everyone has to be ready to go," added Olson. "A come back win at home is always fun, but the way our team did it was even better. They really took advantage of playing on their own field, they refused to lose, it was all them today."

In The Circle:
Lacey Mathiowetz got the 11-0 shut out win in game 1. She pitched a complete 5 innings, giving up just 4 hits, she also had 2 strike outs 
Autumn McGough started in the second game, giving up 5 runs on 5 hits, and striking out 4. 
Baileigh Momberg came in relief for the Comets in the 3rd inning of game 2. Momberg would settle in, striking out 4 and giving up 4 scattered hits but zero runs.

At The Plate:
Lindsey Tulla was 6-7 at the plate, she had 3 RBIs, 3 doubles and a stolen base on the day 
Madison Terres was 5-7 at the plate, she had 6 RBIs, 2 doubles, 1 triple and a home run on the day 
Mackenzie Hughes was 3-6 at the plate, she also was hit by a pitch twice, she recorded 3 RBIs, 1 stolen base and 2 triples
Mathiowetz, McGough, Lawrence, Sierra & Pino all recorded an RBI  

"Our three seniors in uniform all contributed in some sort of fashion today. Huey, Q and Desi all had RBIs; it's always nice to see them be successful but today was a little sweeter," said Olson. "I know I said this earlier but I can't stress enough how good it felt to play at home, it means a little more to this team because 35 plus games on the road can get draining. It was two wins they deserved today and I hope they expect the same result when Dak comes back on Monday."

The Comets will return back to home on Monday afternoon as they will host Dakota State for games 3 and 4 of the series. First pitch is slated for 2pm. We encourage everyone to come out to Paul Karlstad Field in Portland to support your Comets!