Bruins battle to Bracket A final before falling to Dickinson State
ABERDEEN, S.D. -- The Bellevue University softball team battled out of the loser's bracket with a 5-2 win over Presentation to begin the day but fell in the Bracket A final, 1-0, to Dickinson State to end their season at the North Star Athletic Association Tournament.
The Bruins wrap up their season with an overall mark of 34-20, including a 19-5 record in league play which was good for second place in the regular season.
Game One: Bellevue 5, Presentation 2
Playing against one another for the sixth time in seven games, Bellevue picked up their fourth win of the week against the Saints. BU scored first and never trailed as the defeated host Presentation, 5-2, to escape the throws of the loser's bracket.
In the top of the second Kayla Young drove in Erin Sharpe, who had doubled to lead off the frame, to plate the game's first run.
Two innings later the duo from the Land of Enrichment doubled the Bruin advantage. Sharpe led off the inning with her second double and again came in to score on a single off the bat of Young.
Presentation didn't go quietly. The Saints responded by hanging a two-spot in the bottom half of the inning. Amber Ewert tripled home Jacque Trost and came in to score herself on an RBI-groundout by Shanice Webb.
Bellevue grabbed the lead for good a half inning later. With two out, Sharpe extended the inning when she reached on an error that allowed Michaela Miller to score. Young followed with her third RBI-single of the game a batter later to score Sarah Zeleny.
The Bruins added an insurance run in the six when Maddie Siedlik singled in Kaitlyn Goney to put BU up 5-2 and secure the final margin of victory.
Kelli Fisher (23-12) earned the complete game win. She held the Saints to two runs on five hits and struck out five.
Ashlyn O'Keefe (9-10) took the loss, allowing four unearned runs on six hits and a pair of walks in 4.2 innings of work. She struck out five. Kayla Reynolds allowed the final run of the game out of the bullpen.
Game Two: Dickinson State 1, Bellevue 0
Emily Gigax and Sayde Woten each had two-out singles for the Bruins but that was all the Bellevue offense could manage against Dickinson State's Alex Watson as BU fell 1-0.
The Blue Hawks scored their only run in the first inning. McKenzie Kenobbie led off with a single, moved up to second on a sac bunt, advanced to third on a ground ball to the right side, and came in to score on a single by Brianna Grayson.
Kelli Fisher (23-13) went on a roll from there as she retired 16 of the final 18 batters she faced to end the game. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough for the Bruins as BU couldn't solve Watson.
Watson (23-2) earned the win for the Blue Hawks, logging the complete game two-hitter and striking out nine along the way.
Fisher took the loss for Bellevue despite limiting top-seeded Dickinson State to just one run on four hits. She struck out seven. Fisher wraps up the season with 23 victories, which is tied for the second-most by a Bruin in a single-season all-time.
Dickinson State advances to the Championship Series where they will meet either Jamestown or Valley City State.